Faith (The Next Story)
by soulkeeperpol
Summary: Now that Eun Soo has come back, they have to decide what to do with her. Will Choi Young quit his position to protect her and live with her somewhere far away or will she take the position as the Heavenly Doctor again at the risk of them being together?
1. Chapter 1: The King and his Guard

Chapter 1: The King and His Guard

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters nor the original story

...

"The way things are, we have two choices." The King of Goryeo, King Gong Min was sitting on a chair opposite his most trusted general Choi Young who was also the leader of his personal guards, the Wu Dal Chi. "One is that you give up your position and live with her somewhere far from here where no one would know who you are."

He searched Choi Young's eyes to make sure he understood his next words. "But she will have to make sure never to stand out. You must teach her the ways of a Goryeo woman and she must not heal anyone nor use any of her tools." He paused for emphasis. "If you were to be found out, even with your strength it is impossible to fight against the world, not without a position of power."

Choi Young contemplated the thought of living with Eun Soo on a small house near a river. He had dreams like that before. He still dreamed of it from time to time, especially when he remembers her smiling face. The thought brought on some painful memories. Like when Eun Soo and the former King Choong Jung had waved at him goodbye with their smiling faces filled with trust. He failed them that time.

 _I am sorry that I couldn't do anything when Gyung Chang was dying even if I am a doctor and that I made you do that with your own hands. And I'm also sorry that I stabbed you in front of heaven's door. But thank you for being alive. I know you protect me even if I bother you and complain about everything. I really appreciate that._

Her voice sounded clear in his ears as if she were just beside him. He almost turned his head to gaze at her. It had been like that in the four years that she was away. Every time he felt sad or burdened. Every time he blamed himself or felt incompetent, she would always whisper a chide or an apology or even sometimes yell at him in his mind. He couldn't tear her off his thoughts and so he continued living each day as if she were there.

And every time he strove to live on he would see her smile. He always believed she would come back. He had placed his faith in her, he could not afford not to.

At the moment he just wanted to go and see her again and live with her somewhere safe, away from everything. However, he couldn't contemplate changing a single thing about her. Eun Soo acting like a Goryeo woman? He almost snorted at the thought. And her not being able to use her skills would be torture for her, to her it would be like not living at all. There was once a time when he thought living only meant not dying. It was through her that he learned there was more to life than that. He stopped his musings and faced his King. "And the other option?"

"She can come back to the palace and become Eui Seon again." Choi Young's eyes narrowed at this. But the King continued. "I am no longer the weak King I was five years ago. And you can protect her easier inside the palace."

The King's lips curved into a little sad smile before he went on "And I know that despite the fact that you want to be with her, you don't really want to leave the kingdom in the midst of war. She will be free to be herself whilst being protected by the Kingdom. I can even make her position have an official seat of power. I owe her a lot. And I can make these things happen as the King of Goryeo."

Choi Young clenched his fist though his face showed nothing of what he was feeling. The King was right, it would not be the same as it was five years ago when the King just sat on the throne. At that time they needed Eun Soo as a symbol for the kingdom because the people had no faith in their new king. Eun Soo who came from the heavens had saved their Queen and Captain. It was a sign of blessing from the heavens. Although in reality Choi Young had kidnapped her and forced her to heal the Queen at sword point and it was this heavenly woman who actually stabbed him with his own sword.

But now that they have strengthened the kingdom and even managed to bring back their lost land, the people adored their king like no other. The palace would be the best place of protection for her. But there was a reason why it was the second option and not the first one and the two men facing each other knew this without saying.

"But like that, you may never be able to marry her." The King finally voiced it out with a sigh. "Everyone in the government is already jealous or wary of your power. If you marry the great doctor from the heavens I don't know what they will do." The King was quite frustrated with this as well.

"I may be able to take your side if they take things up officially but I cannot stop them from making trouble for you." The retainers always treat Choi Young with respect due to his authority and his achievements in taking back the lost lands of Goryeo. However, with the exception of a few, they watched his every move like a hawk and pounced on the smallest mistake that he made. He had too much influence on the king, they believed. So therefore he was dangerous.

This was all true of course, which made Choi Young's miserable position partly his fault. He trusted Choi Young like he trusted no other, maybe except for his Queen. However, he had worked hard to be self reliant and not too dependent on his general. He knew in some ways he succeeded. While before he had been like a little boy constantly depending on Choi Young for support, now he had become an equal partner. They would usually stay up nights talking about strategies of war and even sometimes on politics, although Choi Young still hated that part of his job. But there was no replacing him. And no matter how much he wished for his general's happiness he was loathe to let him go.

Choi Young suddenly stood up and gave the king a brief bow. "I will think about it more and come back with a decision later your majesty." Then he turned to go.

The Kings eyes followed him. "The news will spread soon no matter how hard you try to hide her as her manners make her stand out too much, so you better decide quickly."

That seemed to annoy the general a bit because there was a flicker of anger in his eyes as he turned to look back at the king. "This is about her life, it is not a decision I alone can make." And with that he strode out and left.

The king stared at the doorway deep in thought. That the general actually wanted the doctor's thoughts about the decision spoke volumes about their relationship. One corner of his lips curved into a lopsided smile. Be it a King or a warrior stained in battle, love chooses no victim. _Sarang_ (Korean word for "love" which didn't seem to be used during the Goryeo period). That was a word he learned from his wife who in turn had learned the word from the doctor.

"The Queen has come to see you your highness."

The King's smile spread to both corners of his lips as he heard the announcement. It was as if his thoughts had summoned her to him.

"I will go see him alone." He heard her command her guards before she walked through the door. The King was alone in his room as well having been speaking with Choi Young in private.

The Queen who was usually calm and poised was gazing at him with excitement as soon as the doors were closed. "When is Eui Seon coming back to the palace? I met Choi Young on my way here but I couldn't ask him in front of everyone."

The King gazed lovingly at his beautiful wife. "Come sit." He gestured at the chair Choi Young had been sitting on.

Queen No Guk blushed as she realized she had just lost her composure. She walked slowly to the chair and sat down. Then she looked straight at her husband. "She is coming back to us right?"

"I don't know." The King said in all honesty. "But it seems the word has spread already." He continued now with a worried frown. "I was right to warn him to make a decision fast."

"Lady Choi was the one who told me." The Queen explained. "Eui Seon had asked for her to let me know." She was still looking straight at the King whose face has now registered surprise. "She didn't tell her why and from what I can get by Lady Choi's tone, Choi Young had seemed reluctant about the request. Still, doesn't this mean she has plans to see us?"

The King was now lost in thought. It seemed to him that Eui Seon making such a request meant she was preparing to ask the Queen for a favor. But why did Choi Young make no mention of it? When he came to see the King, it didn't seem like that he had already talked it over with Eui Seon. As far as he can gather, after they traveled back he had left her with the Su Li Bang and came to see him.

"What did Choi Young have to say?" He was brought back from his thoughts by his wife's question. He wanted to sigh.

"If it were up to him, he would have probably run away with her somewhere far from all this." He gestured his surroundings. "Sometimes I wish I could just take your hand and run away too." He said wryly.

The Queen's smile was the sweetest he'd ever seen and he felt his heart skip a bit. "I wish there was more I could do for them." He said instead, changing the subject before the simple comment could turn into longing. "The both of them, they have done so much for us. They have saved our lives countless of times. And all I've ever done really was force Choi Young to serve the Palace and stop the doctor from going home. I have given them so much trouble."

The Queen reached out to grasp his left hand that he hadn't noticed was clenching the edge of the table. "They are together now because you made her stay." She was looking at him earnestly. "I remember I said before that the Heavens must be punishing her for being here. However, now I know this is where she wants to be. Here is where Choi Young needs her to be. So maybe, just maybe this is where she was supposed to be all this time and the Heavens have used us to bring her here."

His wife always knew what to say to make him feel better. If Choi Young felt half the love he felt for his wife at this moment, then his mistake might have saved Choi Young after all.

...

As always she was busy. He had rushed back worried about her but he should have known she'd gotten comfortable with everyone already. Eun Soo was sitting on a chair facing a table talking animatedly surrounded by about ten Su Li Bang members, some sitting opposite her, beside her and the rest standing around the corners of the table.

Choi Young stood at the door entrance to where Eun Soo and her crowd was. He stood completely undetected as they all had their attention focused on her. Choi Young frowned at that. He could have massacred everyone in the room by now.

"With just a flip of her wand the fairy godmother turned the pumpkin into a carriage and the little mice into white horses." She had everyone's attention and everyone's eyes had widened either in disbelief or awe. "And then she transformed Cinderella's ragged clothes into a beautiful and shimmering blue gown, and on her feet were glass slippers."

"Can everyone in heaven do that?" One of the younger members who was sitting beside her asked, his eyes filled with wonder. "Turn mice into horses, I mean?"

Eun Soo faced him and gave one of her brilliant smiles. "Of course not." She then faced everyone with a serious expression. "This fairy godmother was very powerful, you cannot find anyone quite like her. She was special because she could do what most other people could not."

"She's like you then?" One of the other guys standing in the corner eagerly added. "I heard you can cure any disease, tell the future, and even raise the dead." He sounded as if he was in awe of her and that he believed she can really do all those things.

Eun Soo didn't even bat an eye at the statement, as if she had heard this countless of times before. "Well as I said, that rumor is actually quite exaggerated. I do know some things that will happen in the future and I have knowledge of medicine that most doctors don't have…"

That was it. Before she finished speaking Choi Young strode forward towards Eun Soo, annoyance clearly etched on his face. It was the twins who was sitting opposite where Eun Soo was who noticed him first. They quickly stood up in alarm. "She was just telling us a story about Cin... Cindre…"

"Cinderella." Eun Soo confirmed as they seem to have a hard time remembering the name. But everyone's attention had now shifted to Choi Young, and Eun Soo was the last to turn around to face him.

It was all she could do not to rush into his arms. She had missed him so much. All this time she was regaling the Su Li Bang with stories trying to take him off her mind but she never really completely succeeded.

Suddenly everyone had somewhere to go and something to do. And then they were alone. However instead of a cheerful greeting, Choi Young was staring down at her with annoyance. "I thought we have agreed to keep your identity a secret. Is your idea of a secret proclaiming to everyone that you can tell the future?"

Eun Soo understood his concern. However, didn't the Su Li Bang already know who she was? Wasn't it him who decided that they could trust them? It was not as if she had gone out into the streets to proclaim her knowledge.

But Choi Young was filled with frustration. He had just gotten two completely awful options on how he could go about making her stay and then he had found her happily surrounded by men. Her telling them about her skills was the last straw. But he was trying to reign in his anger. He moved his sword from his right hand to the left as he leaned down with his right hand on the table so his face was almost in level to Eun Soo's. "I agreed to alerting the Queen about your presence wherein I have to let my aunt know about you as well when the King would have eventually told her, simply because you insisted it was important. But it doesn't seem like you know what is important at all."

With that Eun Soo stood up uncaring that half of his body was blocking her from doing so. Her head would have banged against his if he had not been quick to move back into standing position. But she knew he would, and so they were now standing facing each other. Her fiery eyes stared back into his in defiance but when she spoke it was in a really calm voice. "I know what I am doing. I have a plan."

But instead of calming him, her steady voice sent him deeper into the edge. How could she be so calm when he felt like a bomb ready to explode. "Then tell me about this plan of yours because it seems to have many flaws." He just finished speaking when the Man Bo Siblings showed up by the door as it was still open. Although Choi Young had his back towards the entryway he immediately noticed their presence and grabbed Eun Soo's left wrist with his right hand before she could reply. He dragged her past the siblings to the room provided for her. He then forcibly sat her on the bed by holding both her shoulders down. Then he released any contact with her and slammed the door close with his foot.

But the walk on the way to the room had calmed him down a bit. In fact he actually felt a bit ashamed about his behavior. She was having such a lovely time until he went and spoiled it all for her. It was not what he actually had in mind as he was trying to get back to her in haste. He stood there facing her but he could not meet her eyes anymore.

Eun Soo's heart ached. It ached for herself and it ached for him. Although he had done nothing but yell at her since he came back all she wanted to do was hold him and tell him everything would be okay. She knew he was worried about her which is why he was able to say all those things. But she wasn't sure how to appease him and at the same time not give up on her decision.

"Imja I…" Suddenly Choi Young didn't know what to say. As his anger dissipated so had his reasons. He could not remember why he had been so angry. She was merely with the Su Li Bang and they all already knew about her identity. The fact that he hadn't come up with any good ideas to keep her safe in this world was also not her fault.

"So how did the meeting with the King go?" She saved him by asking.

Choi Young sighed and Eun Soo patted the space on the bed beside her. Choi Young sat beside her without a word of complaint, putting down his sword beside him. "It seems we have two choices." He said without looking at her. "We can either run far away from here and live ordinary lives under disguise, or you can become Eui Seon again. It's way easier but we might have problems being together that way."

"Let's go for the second option." Eun Soo said without second thoughts. In fact she was relieved that the option was still there.

Choi Young turned to face her in surprise. Her immediate answer was so unexpected that the surprise came in blindingly first before the pain started to pierce into his heart. He immediately schooled his expression to remain impassive while his heart rebelled that she could just coolly choose to not be with him.

But Eun Soo took his left hand and held it in between hers as she looked at him with a loving smile. "The one year it took for me to find my way back to you, everyday I would promise that when I would finally find my way back to you, I would make sure not to make you suffer from choosing between love and duty."

When Choi Young opened his mouth to speak she shushed him by pressing her left index finger softly against his lips. "I cannot make you leave the Palace, as such the first option is not viable. This is the fifth year of King Gong Min's reign. The wars has just started. The King needs you, the Kingdom needs you. If I take you away, Goryeo will fall. And when it falls it will also take a huge part of yourself along with it."

She withdraw the finger that was pressed on his lips as her hand moved to cup his right cheek. "I cannot allow that."

Choi Young had gone speechless with her words. As he didn't like the first option for her sake, her reasons were all for his. He remembered when they had the talk of being partners. 'We will protect each other.' She had said and he had laughed at the notion. He was a warrior, it was his duty to protect her, he didn't need protection. But he was wrong. Not only did she protect him from harm, she had also protected his heart and his soul. And now she was doing it again.

But Eun Soo was not done talking. She had withdrawn the hand that was on his cheek but her right had was still holding his. "I thought and thought about it, and I finally realized that the only way for you not to choose between me and the King is if I and the King were one."

Choi Young didn't like the sound of that but he let her finish talking. "I plan to not just become the Eui Seon I was before. I will become an entity that will serve as a pillar for the King. I will become that no one in Goryeo will want to separate me from the Kingdom. And when you protect me, you protect the Kingdom."

Her plan was actually quite reasonable. But it didn't help him at all. The more the Kingdom needed her, the more he can never be with her. But instead of voicing out his worries he focused on the much simpler question. "If you had this plan from the start, why have you not shared it with me?"

There was no accusation in his eyes as he asked. He simply wanted to know. Eun Soo gave a wry smile. "I wasn't so sure the King still wanted me to be Eui Seon."

"Ah. So that's why you wanted the Queen to know." Choi Young mused. "Did you want the Queen to convince the King of it? Did you by any chance send a secret message along with telling her that you're back? I did meet the Queen coming to see the King as soon as I was done speaking with him."

Eun Soo laughed. "No, nothing like that." A secret message? Wow, did he think she was some spy on a covert mission? "I just thought that if the Queen knew I was back then she would want to see me as I want to see her. And since the King likes making his wife happy, the idea might come to him even though it would not actually be what she wants."

She was smart, he gave her that. "Is this one of those tricks you got from watching movies in heaven?" He still didn't really understand what she meant by watching movies, but she had always given that as the basis for her plans.

"Partly, I guess."

"Well, it was not really needed as the King does wants you to be Eui Seon again without needing the Queen's encouragement." This time it was Choi Young's hands that held Eun Soo's right hand between his. He looked straight into her eyes, willing for her to understand. "Imja, if you do this I might be able to fight for you and the King, but the only person you will be allowed to marry would be the King. You would be too important to become anyone else's wife."

He thought she would at least be a bit worried about it, but she just smiled into his eyes. "I also have a plan for that." Her eyes were shining with excitement as she continued. "I will not just be the Eui Seon that the Kingdom needs. I will also be the Eui Seon that everyone fears to go against. Before I made the travel here, I brought some stuff that might help me. And I also realized that since you actually have lightning powers, you might be able to recharge them for me. If they believe my words are the words of the future then who can dispute me when I tell them that for the future of Goryeo I have to be your bride?"

Choi Young was astounded. Some of the things she said about her stuff and charging with his lightning powers he didn't really understand. But he got the full gist of what she was aiming for. She was going to trick the whole country of Goryeo that she had powers worthy to be feared so she could command them to accept their marriage. He had fallen in love with one hell of a woman.

...

NEXT Chapter 2: The Healer from the Heavens – Will Eun Soo's plan to control the retainers give the lovers a chance to be together or will it back fire and put hers and Choi Young's life in danger? And who is this dashing and mysterious leader of the Red Turban Troops who seem to know that Eun Soo is from the future and not the heavens?

Author's Notes: I know in the series Eun Soo seemed to have entered the portal immediately as soon as she got back to the present. But to make my story work, let's say she didn't. I need some of the future stuff.


	2. Chapter 2: The Healer from the Heavens

Chapter 2: The Healer from the Heavens

Author's Notes: Thanks a lot to everyone who gave their comments on my first chapter. I'm so happy there are still people following Faith despite it being finished a long time ago. I so love this series.

Please be a bit patient with me with the updates. When I write, I miss Faith so much I end up re-watching some episodes so it gets delayed. I also had to read some Korean history to not make a total mess of the story. I planned to update per week but it doesn't seem possible so maybe once in two weeks. I hope. Thanks again.

-same disclaimer as chapter 1-

...

"She must be some kind of witch, I tell you." Mun Dong Hee was one of the very few talented new Wu Dal Chi recruits who used the sword like a dance. He had been on the inn when their general unexpectedly came back with a woman in tow. He excitedly regaled the story to the other new Wu Dal Chi's who had to stay and watch the palace.

It was late in the afternoon and their duty just ended for the day and whilst the older members were busy doing mock duels the newer ones would usually watch and talk about who would win against who. But this time around, another topic was more interesting than the battle prowess of their leaders. "For sure she had this bewitching aura around her, her hair was as red as fire, and Daejang couldn't take his eyes of her. And take this, he was holding her hand when they came in, not her wrist, but her hand." He emphasized the last word gesturing with his own hand.

The others looked at him in disbelief. The general was not the sort of man who paid much attention to women much less hold a woman's hand.

Sang Hoon Jin in particular who had already been with the Wu Dal Chi for about two years knew this information was a lie. After taking back the territories of Goryeo the general's name had been hailed throughout the country. Once, he had seen the general being introduced to a government official's daughter. She was one of the most beautiful females he had ever laid eyes on, and he had heard that when she played the lute, the sound would be like angels coming down from the heavens. But the general didn't even seem to notice that she was a woman. He had treated her with respect but his eyes never lingered on her. And although the smiles she threw his way were plenty, he would merely answer with a nod of respect.

 _All that person cares about is duty and honor._ Many of the Wu Dal Chi believed that to be true.

But Dong Hee was not done talking. "And then, when we were on the boat, he sat down beside her, really near, that their arms were touching. And while we were riding on horses, she rode beside him and he kept glancing at her." He paused for effect. "And he even smiled."

Hoon Jin slapped the back of Dong Hee's head after that last remark. He had enough of his lies. "If you are going to make up stories, make them at least believable."

"It's true though." This came from another Wu Dal Chi which surprised Hoon Jin. "I wasn't on the same boat but on the way here I did see Daejang look at her and smile. Multiple times in fact. If I didn't know how Daejang is, I would think she was his woman."

"Hey, wasn't there a rumor before about Daejang and the Prince's fiancee?" Another Wu Dal Chi member piped in. "I heard the Prince's wedding never happened because Daejang barged in and claimed her in front of everyone."

"That was Eui Seon!" Said another. "The doctor that Daejang took from the Heavens to save the Queen."

"But I heard she went back to Heaven though."

"What is all this talk of heaven?" Doek Man who had just came out victorious from his fight had just overheard their conversation and sternly asked the question. But the new recruits were too curious to pay attention to his tone.

"Is it true?" It was Dong Hee who asked. "Was that really the Heavenly doctor that came with us back to the palace?"

This earned him another slap at the back of his head and this time by Deok Man. "Were you not warned not to speak about this?"

Dong Hee rubbed the back of his head to ease the pain. "We were told not to spread it around, but I was just talking to fellow Wu Dal Chi members." He complained.

"So it is true then?" Another Wu Dal Chi member concluded. "The Heavenly doctor is back."

"Did she really become a member of the Wu Dal Chi before?" asked another.

"I heard she stayed at Daejang's quarters while she was at the palace." This other comment seemed doubtful as if the speaker could not believe the words he was saying.

Doek Man couldn't resist grinning at that. "Eui Seon is Daejang's woman of course, everyone in the palace knows that." His words implied that it should be common knowledge however his tone belied his feeling of superiority for knowing such piece of information about their general. He was still grinning from ear to ear when he became the new recipient of the back-head-slap. He turned around in annoyance, angry at who would dare do such a thing to him and came face to face with Choong Seok, the general's right hand man.

"You are supposed to be preventing this kind of behavior and not feeding it." Choong Seok's no nonsense look said it all. He was not amused. Then he addressed the rest of the Wu Dal Chi. "You don't really have the time to be gossiping around, go train yourselves."

Everyone complied, but Hoon Jin could not stop thinking of what he just learned. He had heard of the Heavenly doctor before. Five years ago when Gong Min took the throne, he had brought her along with him. It was said that she went down from the heavens and sewed the princess of Yuan's head back together. Many officials had said they saw the stitches on her neck themselves.

Being a son of a scholar, his father had wanted him to follow in his footsteps. However Sang Hoon Jin had always been partial to the sword. At the age of seven he had been an avid follower of the stories about the Jeok Wol Dae and how they protected the kingdom. At thirteen he heard a leader of the Jeok Wol Dae had become the new captain of the Wu Dal Chi. That person, they said could kill three men with one sweep of his sword and could control lightning. Hoon Jin had been determined since that day to be a member of the Wu Dal Chi. So he had begged his father that he be trained by the sword instead of by the book.

But it hadn't been easy for Hoon Jin. The Wu Dal Chi would only take the finest of warriors. Family background, influence, and monetary bribes mattered less than skill. And thus being accepted at the age of 23, two years ago, Hoon Jin had taken a lot of pride in it. He was there when Choi Young had taken back Ssangseong with the help of the young general Lee Seong Gae and his father Lee Ja Chun, a Ssangseong official who had taken the side of Goryeo. His son owed his life to the Heavenly doctor who in turn had supported the King, so he had taken this as a sign of providence.

However, Hoon Jin also heard that the Heavenly doctor had tried to kill the general when they first met and had even cursed him so that he was sick for days. Many had also whispered that she had seduced the general so as to take him back to the heavens with her. Whatever the truth was, he knew for a fact that the mighty general he had admired for years had been reportedly sent to jail three times since the doctor had been around. Hoon Jin decided he didn't like her at all, and wished she never came back.

...

"Are you sure this is what you want to do?" The Queen was sitting on a chair inside her chambers where Eun Soo was changing with the help of Lady Choi. She had arrived early this morning covered in a hooded cloak, and escorted by a very irritated Choi Young. Since no one else knew of her presence in the Palace except for the Royals, the Wu Dal Chi, and Lady Choi, the only place she could go to was Kwon Seong Jeon (The Queen's Chambers).

Eun Soo had donned on a white dress with golden embroidered lace down the front, designed like flowers, and was covered by a red flowing cloak. Her hair flowed a brilliant red loosely in waves down her shoulders and back with hair extensions that made it reach almost to her thighs. The only adornment she had on her hair was a golden flower shaped clip.

The clash of colors coupled with her long bright red hair made her look ethereal but the Queen was too worried to notice. Eun Soo flopped down on the chair opposite the Queen and gave her a smile. "I should be fine, I've done this type of thing before remember?"

The Queen still looked doubtful, she turned to look at lady Choi as if pleading for help. Lady Choi looked at Eun Soo and then back at the Queen for once not knowing what to say.

Eun Soo glanced at the blank expression on lady Choi's face and then back to the Queen's concerned one and sighed. "I just thought this would be a better option than having to run away or hide." she said with a pout. "Do you think I'm crazy?"

...

"She has gone crazy." Choi Young said in frustration.

The King watched him calmly as he sat opposite where his general stood, inside Gang Ha Jeon (The King's Chambers). The King's Eunuch Ahn Do Chi stood beside the King in silence, not betraying the amusement he felt at the situation.

"She thinks she can just go tell everyone she is from a different world and they will all just believe her."

"It just might work." The King finally said. He had been silent for some time now as his general vented out his concerns. He had listened quietly and patiently.

The absurdity of the situation wasn't lost on Do Chi though. Although Choi Young and the King had been really close, that sometimes words were not needed for them to understand each others schemes and plans, they never really talked about anything personal. That Choi Young was now venting out personal frustrations to the King had surprised him. A lot.

"It might work?" Choi Young looked at the King in exasperation. "Might work? That's what she said too. 'Might work' is not a hundred percent successful strategy."

"Well if it doesn't work, you can always just drag her out of the palace and run away." There wasn't a hint of a smile on the King's face but his eyes betrayed his amusement and to that Choi Young narrowed his eyes.

"You think this is all funny?"

He looked so seriously angry that the King had to bite his lip to stop himself from laughing. Yet he couldn't stop one corner of his lips from rising up into a smile. "The meeting is in the palace, I don't think anyone would try to physically harm her here. And I should think I still have some power as the King to prevent any other trouble."

The moment he said that the King regretted it. For it was as if Choi Young suddenly woke up from a trance and realized he was standing in front of his King. He bowed his head respectfully. "You are right, your highness. I should go fetch her now."

The King smiled and nodded, although he would have liked to listen more. His general had always been calm and level headed. Even surrounded by a vast army he would remain unfazed and find a way out of any situation. He always stood firm to his morals and had no want for any wealth or power. It had been really refreshing to see this side of him. The King had almost forgotten how it was when his general would leave behind the palace to run away with a woman. Yes, he seemed more troubled and restless since she had came back. But he also seemed more alive.

"We should get going too your highness." It was Do Chi who broke out of the King's thoughts. The King stood to go.

...

They couldn't help gaping when they saw her. Choi Young had come to Kwon Seong Jeon with six other Wu Dal Chi members, including Deok Man, Dong Hee, and Hoon Jin while he left the guarding of the King to his right hand man Bae Choong Seok. The ones on the look out in the palace grounds were being led by Dae Man.

And they could not stop staring at her. The last time that she had been the recipient of such stares was when she had entered the Wu Dal Chi quarters in shorts, well it had been her pants which she had cut off due to being torn. She learned men in this time wasn't used to seeing skin. But this time she was fully dressed and covered so she began to worry if her dress had a tear somewhere. It had been awhile since she had seen herself on a full length mirror and at that moment she wished she brought one. The thought of her carrying a huge mirror through the gate almost made her laugh.

It was as if she was ready to burst out laughing and this snapped Choi Young out of his trance. She looked different. Very different. In fact if it wasn't for her perky smile he would have thought he had come to the wrong place. And yet the pull she had in him was the same. The warmth, the brightness...

He took her wrist and pulled her to the nearest vacant room to the surprise of everyone who quickly moved out of the way.

"Be careful, I'm already having trouble walking in this dress without having to run after you, I could easily trip on these." Eun Soo said indignantly the moment they were inside, hitching up her skirt to emphasize it's length.

Choi Young looked her over once more. "What kind of joke are you playing at now?"

Eun Soo looked up at him innocently. "The last time, I had a really hard time convincing people I was from the heavens. Jang Bin told me I had to act like I was from there, but I'm not very good at acting heavenly, so I was thinking maybe clothes would help." She looked at him as if seeking his agreement.

"How did you..." Choi Young was reaching out to touch her hair while saying this but he was cut off as Eun Soo immediately backed away.

"Don't! It might come off." she warned and so Choi Young slowly dropped his hand. He was looking at her weirdly again and Eun Soo tried to look at his eyes to decipher what he was thinking.

 _She seemed to be moving farther from him._ Was the center of Choi Young's thoughts the moment he had seen her in that dress. Not even when she had donned the robes Deuk Heung gave her when she agreed to marry him had his thoughts wandered like this. He had instinctively used her hair as an excuse to touch any part of her to be sure she was still there, but he knew that her presence wasn't the one giving him a sense of loss.

In the four years he had waited for her to come back. He had imagined her presence everywhere. Every place they have been together he saw her there. Even in places he had never had a chance to take her, he imagined bringing her there. Although he never thought of her looking like this, the vision in front of him looked more from a dream than his thoughts have ever been able to conjure.

Guessing at what he was thinking, Eun Soo rolled both sleeves up impatiently and crossed her arms across her chest. "I chose to look differently so I can be just me. Clothes are easy to replace but my personality is quite difficult to change you know. And I don't plan to be acting like a different person my whole life."

When he still didn't say anything she moved closer to him which made her look up to see his eyes because he was so tall. He looked so lost and unsure it squeezed at her heart. So she gave him a gentle smile while looking straight into his eyes. "I'll change out of the clothes if you don't like them that much."

"If you fail, they will force you to marry the King." Choi Young was grasping at any thought of protest that entered his mind.

"No they wont." This time her smile looked triumphant. "I'm not very well versed on the Goryeo part of history, however if your kiss could stop Deuk Heung from marrying me, then there is no way I am still a fitting candidate for a Queen." She moved her head to the side perkily with a teasing look in her eyes. "Or have you forgotten that you kissed me in front of all those people?"

There was an intense silence as he looked back at her unamused by her lighthearted banter. Eun Soo's smile slowly evaporated as the air seemed to grow thicker. The look in his eyes was stealing her breath away.

Before he knew it, Choi Young had raised his fingers to touch her lips propelled by the memory of the kiss. Eun Soo stood frozen as he traced her lips. She suddenly found it hard to breathe. They need to meet the King soon, she should move back, away from his touch. But she couldn't move. In fact she felt it was a miracle she could still stand, her heart was beating so loudly in her chest he must be able to hear it.

He wanted to replace his fingers with his lips. He wanted to taste her, feel her, and assure himself she was no longer a figment of his imagination. He met her eyes looking for confirmation. The last time he had kissed her he hadn't given her a choice. He had taken her by surprise, he knew that. This time he wanted her to want it.

He was going to kiss her. Their lives had been a whirlwind of danger since the moment they met, that times where they were able to enjoy each others company had been few. And most of those instances they had spent trying to run away with bounty hunters after them.

But the timing was wrong and there were people waiting for them just outside, still she wanted him to kiss her. The hard beating of her heart was becoming painful as the longing for his kiss grew.

Seeing the want in her eyes, Choi Young's heart seemed to stop. He removed his fingers from her lips as he slowly bent down with the intent to capture her lips with his own. Her eyes fluttered close as if her heart had risen up to a height she could no longer handle. He closed his own, engraving the shape of her lips into memory, wanting to take the heart she so readily offered, wanting to give back his own. But before their lips touched a knock sounded at the door.

Eun Soo felt as if someone had cruelly snatched her heart out from her chest. The air she took in to breathe felt heavy and burning, like she had just ran a mile.

Choi Young clenched his fists as he walked to open the door. It was lady Choi. "Whatever it is you two are doing there, I need to remind you that the King and Queen as well as all the retainers and government officials are waiting."

Choi Young nodded stiffly. Eun Soo made herself busy unrolling her sleeves and fixing her hair. As she moved past him to the door, he touched her shoulder to hold her back. The eyes that met hers was filled with trust. "You can do it. I believe in you."

She smiled back at him. "If I fail, you can always come save me."

Despite his worries her smile was too contagious he couldn't help smiling back. The situation had not changed a bit, however somehow his heart felt lighter.

...

The reaction to everyone in the meeting was more or less similar to that of the Wu Dal Chi. _It must be her long red hair_. Eun Soo mused. She had asked Choi Young along the way if there was anything inappropriate with her dress. He merely looked at her but didn't say anything which she took as a no, else he wouldn't have remained silent.

Eun Soo had just entered the meeting room and was announced to the King. She had insisted on walking in alone to which Choi Young had to agree. She would be safer if she was not associated with him and the Wu Dal Chi. Being seen with him will just remind them of the claim he had staked on her and that would be detrimental to her situation. She needed to be seen as the Heavenly doctor first and not as his woman.

Since the King had told her once before to just act casually with him she merely gave him a nod instead of a full bow then she looked towards the Queen to give her a smile. The Queen smiled back calmly befitting of her regal status. Gone was the worry on her face replaced by confidence and pride. Eun Soo wondered how she had learned to mask everything so easily and look so magnificently dignified. _It must be a princess thing._ She concluded.

"Your highness." It was Lee Jae Hyun, the well renowned scholar, who managed to recover first. "Didn't you declare to us all four years ago that she is no Heavenly doctor and that you merely started the rumors yourself?" Everyone in the room who have heard of it murmured in agreement and whispers were being shared everywhere.

Eun Soo was about to go sit on the chair behind the King, opposite to where the Queen sat, but the scholar's words stopped her on mid stride. Before the King could answer she faced him herself.

"It is true. I am not some Heavenly Doctor." She shrugged. "In fact I have no knowledge of what it is you call the heavens."

The talk became louder. Wasn't she just introduced the as the Heavenly doctor? But she was not?

"But it is true that I do not come from this world. The knowledge I have of medicine is from a world different than here. A world beyond the gate where things exist that is beyond your comprehension. Whether you want to call that place Heaven or not, it is of no importance to me."

It was not hard to believe that she was from another world. Her manner of speech and her actions were completely different to that of other women. And the way she looked at the moment, even with her brisk strides and snappy tone which should seem out of place from her ethereal vision of loveliness, it made her look magnificent instead. Like a goddess sent from the heavens to battle.

But these were men of logic. "May I ask where have you been these four years?" This time it was the student Lee Saek who asked the question.

"I had to go home." Eun Soo sighed. "Then I had to travel to a different world and them back again to mine. It took me some time to find this place again."

Now everyone was looking confused. "Are you saying there are plenty of different worlds?" Lee Saek asked.

"Well not exactly." Eun Soo raised her index finger like a teacher giving of a lesson. "In essence there is only one world separated through time. And I happen to come from one that is about 700 years from now." She said as her index finger pointed somewhere far away.

Everyone had blank looks in their faces. Eun Soo sighed once more. She knew talking about the future would never work. These people would find it easier to believe she was from heaven than face the possibility of time travel. "Here let me show you." With that she whipped out the mini projector that she had hidden under her belt. She turned around to face the King and pointed it behind him. Then she turned it on.

Everyone gasped, some in wonder and some in fear. She had taken a new projector with her the last time she came back to her world thinking it would come in handy. She had to leave behind the other one she took for fear of changing history and her past with Choi Young. Her surgery tools, her notebook and the projector. She left them there for Gi Chul's teacher to find making sure that history will unfurl in the same way. She could not risk not meeting him.

With the new projector though she had recorded the streets of Seoul, the tall buildings, the fast cars and even the lighted sign boards. She recorded almost everything that she passed by along the way back to the gate. And these she played in a fast forward motion. She really did not want them to clearly see the future. Then she turned it off.

"And that is my world." She looked back at them and smiled. "Whether you want to call it heaven or not, is up to you." Then she went and took her seat.

It was a long time before anyone could speak.

...

A messenger entered a quiet room then keeled in front of a man sitting behind a desk writing letters. "As you have thought, she has come back my lord."

The man nodded at this piece of information then stood to walk over to where the messenger was kneeling. He had on black and red robes. The upper portion of his long hair was tied up into a pony tail with a red ribbon while the rest fell straight on his shoulders. He looked to be about in his early thirties and his face was what you would have described as beautiful if it wasn't for the cold dark look in his eyes.

"So what's the situation?"

The messenger got up to give a full report. But before he did so, he gave a glance to the hooded man sitting in one side of the room who seemed to be engrossed on a book. He wanted to know if it was alright speak in the presence of another. When he got a nod of confirmation he began to talk.

"She's taking up the title as Eui Seon again and this time the King has given the title a position. She already has everyone convinced she is from heaven. And she has the King and Queen's full support. It will be hard to touch her."

The man in the black and red looked lost in thought. "So he has given up on her then?" He thought out loud.

"Impossible." The voice came from the man with the hood. He placed his book down and stood, taking off his hood to reveal his face. It was Deuk Heung Gun. "That man will not give up on her up to his last breath. I know this for a fact."

And indeed he knew. He remembered the first time he had poisoned the woman. He had expected him to come and deal for the antidote. He had not expected to almost get killed. That person had been on a rage of a different level that for a moment Deuk Heung thought he had gone off his mind and was going to kill him antidote or not.

And then he made the mistake of thinking that placing the King's life in danger would keep that person busy enough away from her. He was the King's most trusted man after all. But instead he risked everything to stop their wedding. In all his calculations he had not counted for that kind of crazy behavior.

Taking consideration of what Deuk Heung said, the man revised his plans. "Are all the soldiers ready?" He asked the messenger.

"Yes, two hundred thousand men." came the answer. "Should I report that we are ready to move?"

"No." The man who seemed to be the leader of a vast army quietly replied. "I need to take care of some matters first."

"Are you still thinking of going through the plans of assassinating the King?" It was Deuk Heung who asked. "I tell you, as long as Choi Young is with him, it will be an impossible task. You already have thousands of men ready to go into battle, why not move them?"

"Because we will loose." With that he went to open a drawer and took out a box. "The woman from the future will see to that." He opened the box and inside was a .45 caliber handgun and a silencer. He took the gun and attached the silencer to it like a pro. "I will have to deal with this situation myself.

...

Hoon Jin sighed. She was beautiful, he gave her that. The governor's daughter didn't even hold a candle to her. And her smile, it was like sunshine on a rainy day, the stars on the darkest night, a flowing river on dry parched land. He shook his head away from such thoughts. He needed to be vigilant on his watch and his thoughts were not helping. _Yet she also treated the Wu Dal Chi like friends, she even asked for his name._ He couldn't help thinking.

He was standing guard in the shadows near the room where the Heavenly maiden slept. _And when she passed by she smelled of flowers._ His thoughts once again wandered and he sighed for probably the hundredth time since he'd seen her.

Suddenly he heard footsteps. He watched as a cloaked figure passed by him looking around making sure she was unnoticed. He followed silently. _Where did she plan to go at this time of night?_ It was already past midnight and everyone was asleep except for the guards on night duty. And then he smiled as he saw where she was heading. She was going straight for the Wu Dal Chi quarters.

...

NEXT Chapter 3: The Assassin's Target - An urgent report of the Red Turban Troops on the march to Gaegyeong with 200,000 troops puts the kingdom busy in preparation for war. In the midst of it all, an assassin comes to kill the King?

Author's Notes: Chapter 2 became too long as I decided to replace some of the named Wu Dal Chi members. They will be forever in our hearts but the story must go on. So I had to move some parts to chapter 3. Thus I am actually very excited to update with chapter 3 as it is already partly done and in it is a conversation which is very dear to my heart. But I still cant promise on how fast the update will be.


	3. Chapter 3: The Assassin's Target

Chapter 3: The Assassin's Target

Author's Notes: Please take time to write some comments. Good or bad, I don't mind. I need to know if people actually like the direction the story is going. I have already laid out the story for twenty four chapters but I still revise it as I go and getting feedback would really help.

 **To: faith2012** Thank you for your comments. I too would like to write a kiss and more, but they need the right time. I would like to focus on the love these two have for each other instead of desire, so a kiss between them would have to be an expression of love.

Anyway, I am a Eun Soo fan. I love her to pieces.

 _Many of us women would love to be loved the way Choi Young loves Eun Soo. But as Spiderman's uncle would say, with great powers comes great responsibility. Do we have the heart to protect such a powerful yet vulnerable love? Can we sacrifice as much as Eun Soo?_

Just a thought.

-same disclaimer as the previous chapters-

...

It was already past midnight but still he couldn't sleep, which was something quite unusual for him. Sleeping came easy for Choi Young as a force of habit from years ago when he would spend most of his days asleep. But today, no matter how long he closed his eyes, slumber just wouldn't take him.

He gave up and gazed at the ceiling instead. She should be asleep by now. Was she being visited by nightmares again? He hoped not. Since they have stayed together in his quarters from four years ago her nightmares have not come. And he had stayed with her every night since she had come back and she didn't seem to have nightmares anymore.

He closed his eyes again trying to sleep. It wasn't that he needed sleep. As a warrior he could stay up for days without rest. But he wanted to sleep, otherwise he would just stay up counting the hours until he could see her again. He wanted to see her again. He had gone so long without her, now that she was back he really didn't want her out of his sight.

That was the drawback of this decision she had made. With her new position in the palace she had to stay there. She was now given her own chambers and it would be very inappropriate for him to go see her at this time of night.

Was she happy about this situation? He was usually busy during the day so he really couldn't see her much. Didn't she want to spend her nights with him at least? Had she felt uncomfortable sharing a bed with him? They weren't married yet so it was quite unconventional but he had always kept himself in check and made sure never to take advantage of her.

He flung his arm across his eyes willing sleep to take over. He wanted to see her. He wanted her beside him. He wanted to hold her hand while he slept. He wanted her to be the first thing he sees when he wakes up. When had he started to need her this much?

He heard the sound of his door opening and immediately reached for his sword but he didn't get up. The footsteps didn't sound like that of an assassin, although why anyone would send one to kill him was beyond conceivable. The footsteps though sounded unsure as it came nearer. Definitely not an assassin's. Then it stopped. And then traced back its steps. He immediately got up to a sitting position and turned towards the retreating figure. "Imja?"

The person who was already halfway to the door froze. He got off the bed and turned her around to face him while taking her hood off, surprise registering on his face despite the fact that he had already known it could only be her.

She smiled sheepishly at him. "I just wanted to see if you were asleep."

His eyes narrowed in doubt. "You came all the way here in the middle of the night just to see if I was sleeping?"

She looked down unable to meet his eyes. "I... I had some trouble sleeping... so I was wondering..." Her eyes flittered back to his.

He waited patiently for her to finish, staring straight back at her. "Uhm..." She looked away again this time towards the bed. "I was wondering if I could sleep here tonight."

His face burst into a smile and without warning he picked her up in his arms. She protested in surprise but then seeing his smile clung to his shoulders instead mesmerized by the curve of his lips. It was a very lively smile. He smiled as if she had just said something that made him incredibly happy. That alone filled her heart with joy.

He placed her down gently on the bed and covered her with the blanket. Then he sat on the side of the bed and smoothed the hair that was covering her face and tucked it behind her ear. Her hair was mid length again, he still wondered how she made it seem so long before. "Sleep. You need to be back in your room early before anyone notices you're gone."

He was about to go speak with the Wu Dal Chi shadowing her to confirm that no one else had seen her enter but when he tried to stand she clutched at his arm. "Don't leave please."

There was fear in her eyes when he met them which made him immediately concerned. "What's wrong?"

The action had been instinctive on Eun Soo's part. She forced a smile to alleviate his worry but her eyes turned misty and she couldn't mask it. And she couldn't let go of his arm. "Just stay with me for awhile?"

He cupped her cheek with his other hand, trying to give her solace. "Tell me what's wrong."

Eun Soo looked away. She didn't want to burden him more than she already did. He had waited for her for four years when only one year had passed by for her. She was stronger than this. She willed her heart to be calm as she met his gaze again. She released her hold on him to press the hand holding her cheek closer. "I am here now, I found you, that's all that matters."

"Imja..." She was smiling again. But he knew behind that smile were traces of pain. She had suffered a lot, he knew that. And yet she never complained, she would always give him encouraging smiles, gentle smiles, reassuring smiles, always wanting him to be at ease, caring for his feelings before her own. He might be the one who was the warrior, but she was the one with the stronger heart. He had been saved by those smiles.

That was what had drawn him to her all along. His heart had been empty and dying, and he didn't have the will to fill it up again. He didn't care about anything or anyone, nor did he want to. He only lived to fulfill his duty as what was engraved in him since birth. Honor, loyalty, keeping ones promises, he had been taught all that by his father and his body acted to comply with these values without much thought.

Until he met her. Even when he tried to fight it, her vibrant nature seeped into his heart. She had slowly been filling up his empty heart until he couldn't help but feel, and see the world for the first time through her eyes.

Now he followed his values because they meant something to him. He did his duty because he cared about the King and the Queen and what they represented. Freedom, honor and pride for one's country.

She made him whole. But for that she went through so much suffering, And she was going to go through more of it to stay with him. The least he could do was provide solace to her pain, but how could he do that if she refused to share it with him? "Can you not share with me your heart?"

The plea in his voice flooded Eun Soo's heart to the point that she could not bear it anymore. She got up to a sitting position and hugged him. She hugged him so he wouldn't have to see her crying as tears poured down her face. Choi Young held her.

"I was so scared when I didn't see you there on the field." She began. "And then the gate closed and all I could think of was that I would not be in time to save you." She was sobbing now but she couldn't stop. "I was so afraid you would die of hypothermia. So I planted the aster flowers in the bottle on the same place I had left you dying. I wasn't sure if it would help, I wasn't even sure you would find it, but it was all I could do. I didn't know what else to do," She cried with all the helplessness she felt at that time. "It was the only way I can think of to reach you. You were a hundred years away." The last sentence was filled with desperation as she clung to him. "I'm so glad you are alive."

Choi Young reached for his robe to touch the two bottles that he always brought with him. "I got it. I got your message. I knew you were finding your way back to me. You were never one to give up." Then he hugged her more tightly resting his head on the side of hers. "So I lived and I waited."

"I visited the gate every day."

"If it's you, I can believe it."

"And now I am here, and this is not a dream."

It was a statement and not a question, but it seemed to him that she was saying that more to convince herself. Was this the cause of her fear? He released his hold on her and gently pushed her back so he could look into her eyes. Her face was still wet with tears but she was no longer crying. He wiped the tears with his sleeve gently. "No this is not a dream."

She nodded at that and smiled. This time the smile came from her heart and it filled him with a sense of relief.

"I wanted so much to go see you." He confessed.

The love that shone in her eyes as she continued to smile at him warmed his heart. "Can I stay here every night then?"

His forehead creased into a frown as he thought about it. "It would be dangerous for you to keep going out every night."

"You can come fetch me." She said softly still smiling.

"If we get noticed, rumors will spread." He said casually. Rumors had already spread of course. Although the rumors started four years ago had died down due to her absence, her appearance had kindled it like wild fire especially since he had gotten too much attention due to the battles he had fought in the past few years.

He never really cared for attention, but for once, he was actually happy about it as it made sure that she can no longer be a Queen candidate. But it was her reputation so he wanted her to be aware.

Eun Soo shrugged. "I am no noble lady, nor am I a government official's daughter. I have no reputation to uphold. I am from the heavens remember?" Then she looked at him quizzically. "And you do plan to marry me right? Unless I am wrong about what you meant by asking me to stay with you and protecting me forever..." her words trailed off as a dark look came into his eyes.

"I will never let anyone take you away from me again. I will fight anyone who tries, even if it's the King." The cold earnest look in his eyes made her shiver inside both from remembrance of who this person really is, someone whose life was filled with bloodshed that killing was second nature to him, and the fact that his person was hers. She still abhorred killing, however as she gazed at him, her heart ached with so much love for this person.

She shifted nearer and went back into his arms, encircling his neck with her arms, no longer looking for solace but simply because she wanted to hold him. To her surprise, he picked her up from the bed and shifted her to sit on his lap and then held her tightly so that her whole body was touching his. She smiled at how natural it seemed for him to hold her now when before he wouldn't even let her touch him. "I guess that means you're marrying me." She whispered teasingly.

He drew her away a bit from his embrace to look at her, and since she was sitting on his lap, he had to raise his head to meet her eyes. "Will you?"

His eyes gave away everything as she looked down to meet his gaze, as if he was offering up his very soul. For a person who took life at a normal basis, that his eyes could hold so much warmth, innocence, and vulnerability, tore at her. She thought her heart would burst from loving this person. "Yes."

...

"I believe now is the best time to take Liaoyang." this was from the young general Lee Seong Gae. "Yuan is still recovering from the latest Red Turban attack, it will be hard for them to protect it."

"It wouldn't do us good to be too complacent." Another general spoke. "Although we fought against Yuan to reclaim Dongnyeong and Ssangseong, we are still looked upon as an in-law nation to Yuan, as such we can find ourselves besieged by two different enemies. We need to be careful, your highness."

Instead of replying, the King looked directly at Choi Young. "What do you think?"

"I believe we need to take care of the Wokou (Japanese Pirates) situation first." Choi Yoing answered matter-of-factly. "Reports have it that they are delving deeper into our territories and they are growing more organized in their attacks. If we don't move they could become a huge threat."

Eun Soo listened intently while trying to remember history. She should have paid more attention during history classes, but she was a medical student and history was not a major subject in her field. But it seemed to her that history was unfolding faster than it should.

The King was holding a meeting with his generals and officers. There were only two retainers present which was Lee Jae Hyun, who currently had the first government position and his student Lee Saek beside him. Eun Soo sat on the left side of the King beside Jae Hyun with Choi Young opposite her on the right side of the King. Next to him was Lee Seong Gae and another general Jeong Seun. There were other soldiers sitting at their backs but she wasn't sure who they were.

Looking at Seong Gae, Eun Soo could not help feeling a bit of apprehension. The last time she saw him, he was but a boy, he had grown up since then. He had not forgotten however that she had saved his life. The moment he saw her, he had bowed down and called her his angel. He acted as if he was enamored with her, always smiling every time their eyes met. He was however, very respectful and a complete gentleman. And he still looked up to Choi Young. It was clear that Seong Gae saw Choi Young as a hero who he admired greatly.

There should be no need to worry about Seong Gae at the moment, except that Eun Soo felt that events were moving too fast and she was afraid that things that were supposed to happen decades from now would happen instead in a few years time. Had she changed the future that much already?

The discussion was interrupted as a messenger was announced. He bowed down before the King and the King motioned for him to speak. "Red Turban troops are reported to be heading towards our northwest border. We believe they are aiming for Gaegyeong."

Eun Soo stood up in shock smacking both her palms flat on the table. "But this is happening too fast! Have they evaded Seogyeong already? I thought that happened first. This is not how it should be."

Everyone stared at her, some with doubt, some with suspicion. Choi Young closed his eyes and prayed for patience and self-control.

It was the King who broke the silence as he addressed Eun Soo. "No, there has been no attack on Seogyeong. Are you saying this is not what is written in Heaven?"

Eun Soo strove to remember as much as she could. "I don't know how much has changed but as far as I know, when the Red Turban attacked Gaegyeong, your highness had to escape to Andong."

This foreboding of defeat didn't seat well with anyone. "Are you saying we would not be able defend Gaegyeong?" It was general Jeong Seun who asked in disbelief.

The King turned once more to Eun Soo. "Is there anything we can do to prevent a loss?"

Eun Soo sighed as she sat back down. "Well with everything that is happening, nothing is really set in stone. A lot of events seem to be changing. But if there are things that remain the same then they will come with two hundred thousand troops. Does your highness have an army to fight against that many?"

"We will prepare as much troops as we can to defend Gaegyeong." Choi Young finally spoke. "However I will have the Wu Dal Chi prepare to evacuate your highness to Andong just to be sure."

Talk about battle preparations were being discussed heatedly when there was another interruption. It was lady Choi. "Your highness, the Queen has asked me to call on Eui Seon. A nobleman's child has been a victim of a Wokou attack and is currently being attended at Jeon Eui Shi (King's Hospital). He is on a critical state and as Ha Kyung, the royal doctor is currently visiting the sick daughter of one of the government officials, his father has petitioned the Queen for the heavenly doctor to tend to his son."

Eun Soo didn't wait for permission. She immediately stood up all thoughts of history and war gone as concern for a patient took over. "I will go." The statement was directed to Choi Young.

Choi Young turned to Deok Man who was standing guard near the door and motioned for him to follow her. He nodded, understanding what was asked of him.

Lady Choi had to wait though for the King's permission before taking Eun Soo with her. The King nodded and they headed to Jeon Eui Shi as talks of battle preparations resumed.

...

He cursed himself for his stupidity. He shouldn't have tried to save the child. In a moment of weakness all his plans had gone awry and the child would probably still die anyway. It was stupidity, plain and simple.

At least he had managed to enter the palace grounds. He had left the child, who looked about nine or ten years of age, near the palace gates and drew some noise for a palace guard to investigate. The child was a son of nobility, that he knew as he had been heavily guarded on a carriage. His guards as well as his guardian had all been slain by the Wokou. He had dragged the kid away as a hail of arrows descended on them, however two of the arrows had hit them. Him on his right shoulder blade and the kid on the side of his waist.

As concern for the child placed the guards in a frenzy, calling for medical help and carrying him in, he had managed to sneak into the palace grounds. He made his way slowly to Jeon Eui Shi though it was not an easy task. His vision would sometimes fade out and his breathing had grown harsh as his heart rate accelerated.

The wound was nothing really. He had worse wounds than an arrow to the back. He had already taken the arrow out and it wasn't bleeding too much to the point that he would die of blood loss. It was poison. He knew enough of the effects of poison to know that the Wokou had used poison on their arrows. What kind of poison was it, he wasn't sure. But as the boy was being tended at Jeon Eui Shi his only hope was to steal some of the medicine they would be giving him.

He was already at the herb garden when he noticed her. He immediately hid from view. She was picking up herbs and placing them on a basket, her red hair shining in the sunlight. It can only be her. The doctor from the heavens. He drew his gun and cocked it. He should take this chance. At least he would be able to kill her. At least he would be able to accomplish something in case he would die of the poison. But as he aimed his gun his vision dimmed and he swayed. It was all he could do not to collapse to the ground. He couldn't aim. And if he missed, although no one else would notice as he was using a silencer, his target would hear the hiss of the bullet and her being from the future, she would recognize it. She would run, and he would loose his chance.

At that moment his hand shook and his gun fell into the ground soundlessly, muffled by the grass. He didnt even bother to pick it up. Instead he drew his knife. Judging by the distance between them and her preoccupation with the herbs, he should be able to reach her fast enough to surprise her to immobility and use that moment to slash her throat. He decided that was the best option.

However, whether it was a distance miscalculation on his part, or he wasn't just as swift because his powers had deserted him, or providence had just timed it so that she would be looking at his direction when he was about to strike, but she saw him coming. She threw the basket of herbs towards him and immediately drew a knife pointing it at him. "Don't come near. There are guards everywhere and they will come if I shout."

She should have just called for help instead of warning him but she didn't. Maybe because she could see that the cold eyes looking at her was glazed in pain. The hand which was holding a knife didn't look steady as well. He had fallen to one knee the moment she threw her basket at him. The man was in no position to be fighting.

With the last ounce of his stregth he lunged at her, but then he felt his body go numb and he fell to the ground instead. She immediately took the knife away from his hand then turned him to lay on his back. He looked very pale as if death had already staked a claim on him. From his mode of clothing and his facial features he didn't look like he was a Goryeo citizen. "What the hell have I gotten myself into now? Why do you always get into these crazy situations Eun Soo-ya"

He was descending to darkness and the last thing he saw was her face hovering above him. And his last thought was that she looked the same from the last time he saw her. A beautiful angel with a fiery mouth.

...

He gained consciousness as she entered the room to check on him. She was bringing a tray of food and she stopped near the foot of his bed as she saw he was awake. He slowly took in his sourrounding without taking his eyes off her. He wasn't tied up, there weren't any guards on his bedside and he definitely was not in jail.

"One suspicious move from you and you will find yourself dragged to jail. That is if the guards don't kill you first." She warned. Then she moved forward and placed the tray on the bedside table. "Eat and then get more rest. I have removed the poison from your system and cauterized your wound. You should be well in a few days time if you rest quietly."

She was just leaving when he stopped her by holding her right wrist. For a man who had been on death's door just a few hours ago, he seemed to have recovered his strength quickly. Eun Soo looked back towards him. "Why did you save me?" He asked, his eyes narrowing in confusion.

Eun Soo sighed then answered honestly. "Because you have the same eyes that person had before. The coldness which I had mistook for heartlessness, I learned was actually emptiness. You have that exact same eyes." Then she pried his hands of her wrist using her left hand. "And besides, the poison in your system was exactly the same as the child who I was tending to, you were probably the person who saved him. So you can't be that bad." Then she smiled and turned to go.

He should kill her now before she left. It didn't seem like he could use his powers yet but they were alone in the room and his strength was coming back fast that he could probably strangle her while muffling any sound she would make. He closed his eyes instead. He was tired. He would kill her later.

She stopped at the door before leaving then looked back. "Would it be too much to know your name?"

He answered without opening his eyes. "Taizu."

...

Eun Soo was just writing down history based on her memory when the King entered the room followed by the eunuch Do Chi. She was in her chambers inside the palace, sitting behind the table. "Your highness." She greeted with a smile. "Please take a seat." She said gesturing at the chair opposite her.

The King smiled as he sat down but she could see he looked troubled. Do Chi stood behind him. "If you are going to ask more about the outcome of the war, I am still figuring things out by writing down history as I remember it. Then I am also writing down how things have happened since I got here so as to have an idea on the changes that I might have caused."

The King nodded. "I am here for something else though." he said to which Eun Soo stopped writing to look at him. "I have a favor to ask."

The King had been really supportive of her and Choi Young that she hoped she would be able to help him with what he needed. "It's not about the future?" she asked.

"No." The King answered. "Well yes..." He sighed then continued. "It's about the Queen. The retainers are pressing me to take another wife due to the fact that we have not begotten an heir to the kingdom. But I am not marrying anyone else, I have one Queen and that is enough for me." The determination in his eyes touched Eun Soo's heart.

"Can you declare to the retainers that she will soon beget me an heir?" Eun Soo hesitated at the King's request. If history was still correct then Noguk should be pregnant in a few years. But there would be no heir, and instead he was going to loose his wife.

Noticing her hesitation the King began to worry. "Are we not going to be able to have children?"

"I will convince them that you have no need for another wife." Eun Soo said with resolve.

Choi Young, the King, the Queen, all the Wu Dal Chi and even the Mu Gak Shi and the people at Jeon Eui Shi, they were now all her family. She might not belong in this world but she had decided to live in it. And thus, this was now her world. And she decided she would do everything in her power to protect these people who meant a lot to her, whether or not she had to go against history. She would let the future worry about itself. She was going to save the Queen and her baby.

The King felt relieved. "Are things going well between you and the general?"

Eun Soo broke into a huge smile. It was not all the time that a person would be asked by a King about their relationship. But then again, it would also not be common to be close friends with the Queen and live at the palace. If she would relate such a tale to her friends in the modern world they would be more intrigued about it rather than the fact that she had traveled through time.

The King didn't wait for her reply. Her smile said everything. "I will be going now." He stood to go and Eun Soo bowed without standing.

Choi Young who had been about to visit Eun Soo heard everything from outside the door. He bowed to the King as he passed by him and the King left without saying a word, his eunuch following behind.

Eun Soo was busy writing down history again and she made a mess of her hair as she strove to remember events. Choi Young smiled as he watched her. He remembered all the times she had been preoccupied like this. Those times she had been trying to find a way back to her world.

His smile disappeared as the memory pierced his heart. Not once had he ever considered that she would stay. He had not allowed himself to consider it. But it hadn't stopped his heart from aching every time he thought of her leaving. Many times he caught himself wishing he was not tied down to his duty and that he could just follow her to heaven.

But right now she was working hard to stay with him. The thought immediately lightened his heart. Now she was his forever and he would make sure she would never regret it. He would protect her for the rest of his life.

"You can take a seat you know." Eun Soo said teasingly while still continuing to write. "You don't have to be standing all the way there."

Choi Young sat on the seat the King had vacated and Eun Soo looked up to smile at him. "How's the defense preparations? I'm glad you've had time to come see me, I really missed you."

"I overheard you talking with the King." Choi Young confessed. "I'm just really glad you can't be candidate for Queen, else they'd be pushing you to marry the King by now, and it would have nothing to do with an heir."

Eun Soo looked at him curiously. "Why?"

Choi Young who had been sitting up straight on his seat leaned back with a sigh. "It seems you are right about the two hundred thousand troops. We had sent scouts to check and they reported as much. And based on spy reports, they had been planning to attack Seogyeong with fewer soldiers but had just suddenly changed their plans."

He was staring at her intently. "Also you might be right about our defenses, I don't think we can hold Gaegyeong with that huge an army, and the best strategy would be to escape to Andong."

"You look like you can't believe I'm right." Eun Soo smirked. "For someone who came and took me from heaven, you sure have many doubts."

This time Choi Young leaned forward on the table closing the distance between them. "I don't like it."

Eun Soo chuckled and leaned forward as well so their faces were inches of each other. "Deal with it."

He couldn't help but chuckle in return. "You need to fix your hair."

Eun Soo wasn't given time to reply because just then Dae Man rushed inside the room. "The King is being attacked in the palace halls going to Gang Ha Jeon! The Wu Dal Chi are currently fighting him right now."

Choi Young immediately stood. "Him?" He asked while rushing out the door. "There is only one person?"

"Yes." Dae Man answered. "But he has some kind of wind powers and we are having a hard time fighting him."

That was when Choi Young noticed that Eun Soo was following behind them hugging her bag of tools. "Imja, you need to stay in your room. This man might be dangerous."

At any other time Eun Soo would have just obeyed him. She never wanted to get in the way of him protecting her. But she had just heard that the man had wind powers which means a lot of the Wu Dal Chi would have been hurt, and every single one of them was precious to Choi Young, they were like his children. "I'll stay out of the way."

There was no arguing with her, Choi Young knew this. She was always obedient when it came to her safety so when she became stubborn like this he knew that meant she had placed a lot of thought on her actions and had made up her mind. And there would be no stopping her.

"Prioritize your safety first." said Choi Young, meeting her eyes and waiting for her agreement.

Eun Soo nodded resolutely, reassuring Choi Young at the same time. "I will."

They met with the King who was being ushered away by Choong Seok and three other Wu Dal Chi's. Choi Young nodded at him. "Take the King away to safety." he said without stopping.

They passed by several Wu Dal Chi on the floor who looked to have wind burns all over their bodies. Eun Soo stopped at the first soldier she saw and started tending to him. Choi Young moved forward to meet the assailant.

The assailant had his face covered so only his eyes were showing and he was currently fighting Dong Hee who was using his sword dance skills, using two swords to fight and avoiding the wind blows the assailant was giving at the same time. The assailant was using one sword on his right hand while a swirling power which looked like a whirlwind surrounded his left hand.

The battle ended as the person released the wind on his left hand in a strong blast which pushed Dong Hee back into the wall and rendered him unconscious. The blast of power also blew Dae Man away, and if Choi Young had not dug his sword into the floor for leverage, it would have pushed him back as well.

Unleashing his lightning powers, Choi Young embodied lightning into the blade. Then in one quick motion he pulled the blade from the floor and hurled it at the attacker. The sword barely missed the attacker as he moved to the side quickly, but the electric charge from the sword still managed to hit him and he had to place his hand on the wall to hold himself up.

Choi Young went to Dong Hee and picked up one of his swords. He attacked before the assailant had a chance to recover. But the assailant quickly charged his left hand with a ball of wind and released it to push Choi Young back. The power seemed to be weaker than the last time though and it seemed to have taken the assailant more effort this time. He was also now leaning on the wall clutching his right shoulder with his left hand as if it were in pain. Then he took an object out of his robes using his right hand and pointed it at Choi Young.

Eun Soo's eyes widened as she saw the object in the assailant's hands. Choi Young, who was just recovering from the wind blast was just standing up not seeing the object on the assailant's hand as a threat. Eun Soo started running towards Choi Young. For some reason though, although the gun was aimed at Choi Young, the assailant's eyes seemed to be on her and as she met his eyes she recognized them. She didn't have the time to think about it though as the assailant released the trigger and Eun Soo dashed towards Choi Young, tackling him to the floor.

Choi Young had noticed Eun Soo running towards him, and he had intended to ask her to stay away when she tackled him to the ground. He had not expected that. _What was she thinking?_ "Are you trying to get us killed?" He asked angrily as he untangled himself from her arms quickly lest the assailant attack them while they were on the floor. But he found that the assailant had ran away instead and this troubled him. He had just ran away from the perfect oppurtunity to strike, something was not right.

His confusion turned to fear as he saw Eun Soo wasn't getting up. "Imja?" He lifted her up and saw blood on the floor. "Imja!" Her eyes were closed and he saw that the blood was coming from the left side of her back. Choi Young's body froze with terror. "Imja!" He cried.

...

NEXT Chapter 4: Heaven's Gate – Eun Soo has been shot and no one on Earth can save her. Will Choi Young be able to save her life by bringing her back to Heavens? Will they manage to get to the gate alive when they have to deal with the Wokou along the way? Will the gate even open for Choi Young?

Author's Notes: I was really looking forward to go to the modern world. I think they have more chances of intimacy there. nya.


	4. Chapter 4: Heaven's Gate

Chapter 4: Heaven's Gate

Author's Notes: Once again thanks for the comments. Sorry for being late with the update, couldn't write for a few days due to my schedule and thus this chapter is an example of fast writing with less revisions, so I don't know if its publish ready but I don't have time for smooth revisions.

 **About: the future comments** Don't worry, going to the future is not going to be a new adventure, it can't even be considered as a subplot. But since you guys are not thrilled about it, then I will endeavor to make it shorter than planned. However, the couple just really need this moment before I plunge them into the despair of war. It is opportunity they can never have in the ancient times because they are just too busy its hard to find time for each other. But also it is essential to the plot and the development of the couple...

 **To: faith2012** Definitely they will be back as the core of the story resides in Goryeo. And our precious Wu Dal Chis are there.

 _edits: corrected some grammatical errors in chapter 1 and 3. Changed the word spurned to propelled in chapter 2, why I used that word incorrectly is beyond me. If anyone finds anything confusing or wrong in the words I use please don't hesitate to comment or send me a message if you don't want to comment in public._

Once again any thoughts on the story is welcome, positive or negative. I need honest opinions. Thanks.

-same disclaimer as previous chapters-

...

Yoo Eun Soo closed her eyes and rested her forehead on the door inside one of the hospital restroom stalls. The operation had gone successfully. She was filled with immense relief that she felt her entire body weaken from the release of tension.

"Loosing a patient eventually happens to every surgeon if you stay long enough in this field." Her co-workers would say. They always said that when someone looses their first patient. It was meant as a consolation but she didn't believe the words made anyone feel better at all. And to those who haven't experienced it yet, the words became a dreadful prediction of the future.

Fortunately for Eun Soo, she was one of those surgeons who could close her thoughts to anything once she started on an operation. Her focus was what made her exceptional in her field. No matter how uncertain she was or sometimes even scared, like when she did her first heart transplant, the moment she faced her patient, everything disappears. Fear, uncertainties, doubts and even concern. She would close her heart to everything and simply focus on the job at hand.

It would be after the operation that all the fear and doubts would flood through her body. And she would hide inside one of the restroom stalls until she felt she could once again put on a smile.

The patient wasn't a hundred percent safe yet of course. They will have to observe her for a few days to be sure. But at the moment there was a high chance she would recover. She did a really good job. She was a great surgeon.

But as always when it came to this kind of operation, along with her sense of accomplishment came a sense of depression. The girl she had just operated on had multiple stab wounds in her chest and abdomen. The wounds had been inflicted by her own husband.

Eun Soo was a Cardiothoracic Surgeon, as such she wasn't usually called in to operate on trauma patients. But the current patient had required thoracic surgery and lately Eun Soo had been called into the emergency room for those kinds of trauma operations due to her multiple successes as well as her cool-headedness during an operation.

But she hated the thought of the violence that led her patients to the operating table. And she hated the stench of blood that always clung to her after such an operation.

Why had she even wanted to become a surgeon anyway? She could not remember exactly when and where she'd decided to be one. Well, she heard doctors got paid a lot of money. And it was probably her talent of being clinically aloof that led her to surgery. That and the fact that she didn't really like hand holding her patients, it just made her feel miserable.

She had finally felt better enough to go out, her frustration of what her patient had gone through replacing her weariness. She was walking towards her office when she saw a man berating a child in the hallway. The child was about eight or nine and he was holding a bouquet of white flowers.

"Have your parents not taught you any manners?" The man said in a loud angry voice. "This is a hospital, you should not be running in the hallways."

"I'm sorry." The boy said apologetically.

"Sorry is not going to fix anything." The man continued. "These are very expensive shoes, and you made me spill coffee on them just because you were not watching where you're going."

"I'm so sorry." The child repeated.

In anger the man took the bouquet of flowers the kid was holding and threw it on the floor. The flowers scattered all over the place. "If I say I'm sorry, will those flowers suddenly become a pretty bouquet again? No! It would still be trash on the floor."

This time the child didn't say anything. The man had his back on Eun Soo and the child was facing him, so as she approached them she could clearly see the child's eyes. She wondered at the look on the child's face. There was no fear or anger, or even an ounce of sadness. Just acceptance.

"Hey! He is just a child, I think a little bit of consideration is necessary." Eun Soo addressed the man.

"And who do you think you are?" The man turned to face her. "This is my coffee. These are my shoes. And this kid is the reason I spilled one on the other." He said gesturing to his cup then to his feet. "And unless you are this child's mother coming to scold him, you better just go away. People like you are the reason kids nowadays are spoiled rotten. They just get away with everything just because they are little. Well, I am going to teach this kid a lesson..."

His voice trailed off as Eun Soo stuck up her index finger in front of his face. "Stop being a bastard and just give the kid a break. It's not his fault your parents never loved you."

The man's eyes lit up in rage but before he could speak up Eun Soo moved her finger as if to flick at his face but stopped before it touched him. "Don't dare open that disgusting mouth. Your breath stinks."

Eun Soo could see his anger had doubled but he backed away. "You seem to be an employee of this hospital." He said looking at her white coat. "This rude behavior will be reported to your superior. I'll get you fired, you'll see." And with that he left.

Eun Soo turned to the child who was looking at her with a blank look on his face. Then he began to giggle. And the giggle turned to laughter. "You were awesome." The child said still laughing.

Eun Soo smiled in relief, she had been concerned at the child's previous impervious expression. But he knew how to smile, and that's what's important.

Then to her surprise the child picked up one of the blossoms from the scattered flowers on the floor and offered it to her. "Here, maybe this would cheer you up." The child said with a smile.

When Eun Soo just looked at him in confusion instead of accepting the flower he explained. "Your smile does not cover the sadness in your eyes, you have to do better if want to hide it. And besides this is a Sweet Asylum, one of the most fragrant flowers in the world. It can help mask the stench of blood."

Eun Soo was now looking at the child at a new light. He was a very perceptive kid. She took the flower. "Where are your parents?" She asked.

"They are back at the hotel." The child replied matter-of-factly. "They came all the way here from China when they heard of my sister's accident, but they are too proud to visit her. They disowned her when she married a Korean man. They don't like him because he's poor."

Eun Soo's eyes narrowed as she observed the child's clothing. He wore branded clothes and shoes and the watch on his wrist seemed to be really expensive. "It doesn't look like your family is in need of money."

"Oh no, my parents are very rich." He said, still in that matter-of-fact tone that sounded as if he didn't really care. "They are both renowned plastic surgeons back in China, so we have tons of money."

It dawned to Eun Soo that the child was Chinese. "You speak really good Korean." She observed.

"Yes I learned it from my sister's husband way back when he would visit her in China. They say I have a talent for languages among other things. I learn very quickly."

Eun Soo nodded then smiled at the child again. "I guess you need to go see your sister now."

"Right." He said smiling back. He turned to go then stopped and looked back. "By the way, my name is Taizu. Nice to meet you." He waved at her then he was once again dashing through the hall.

...

Choi Young winced every time the carriage hit a rough spot. He held Eun Soo to his side closer to steady her, doing his best not to move her so much as the royal doctor instructed. "If what she says is true about a pebble sized metal inside her body, it is important that she doesn't move much as we don't know what internal organs might get harmed if it moves deeper inside her." Ha Kyung had said before they left on a carriage for heaven's gate.

Eun Soo was still unconscious but he could feel her breathe on his neck, assuring him she was still with him. There was no assurance that the gate to heaven would be open once they got there, so the King had commanded the royal doctor to go with them to take care of Eun Soo and do everything he can for her until the gate opens. He was now outside on horseback, saying he preferred the feel of the cold air than being stuffed inside a carriage. Choi Young allowed it. There were five other Wu Dal Chi's guarding the carriage on horseback outside. They should be able to protect him.

Choi Young believed the gate would open. He had to believe it would open, just as he believed she would come back to him in the four years she was away.

She was hot to the touch and her breathing had gotten harsher just this morning. The fear that clutched his heart since he saw her bleeding on the floor had not diminished, instead it accelerated to heights that if he didn't have to take care of her he would be completely immobilized by it. She had only been fully conscious once since then.

...

A few days ago...

Choi Young was holding Eun Soo's hand as he sat on a chair near her bedside willing for her to open her eyes. They were at Jeon Eui Shi and although the royal doctor had stopped the bleeding Eun Soo was still unconscious. "It's a very small wound." Ha Kyung had said while studying the damage. "I don't know what kind of powers could pierce like this though. I believe she's just unconscious from the shock."

He had long since left to make more medicine and Eun Soo was still unconscious.

Choi Young tightened his grip on her hand. He wanted to shake her awake so he could look into her eyes and be assured she was well. As if summoned by the power of his will, Eun Soo's eyes fluttered open. Her eyes were filled with confusion as she looked at where she was but the moment she laid eyes on him she smiled. "Hi there partner." She said playfully, although the weak sound in her voice didn't manage to make it come out the way she wanted.

He couldn't say anything. He was just so happy she was alive it was hard to even breathe.

"And once again you are sitting at my bedside nursing me. This is beginning to get shameful." She smiled self-deprecatingly as she tried to get up. The expression turned to pained shock as pain pierced through her waist. She immediately fell back to the bed. Choi Young called for the royal doctor.

"You have a hole in your side, so please don't try to get up yet." Ha Kyung instructed whilst inspecting her bandaged wound, making sure she hadn't started bleeding. The royal doctor was in his late thirties, with mid length hair tied neatly in a ponytail. He had a calmness in him that reminded her of Jang Bin, the previous royal doctor who had been her dearest friend. He had died at the hands of people who had been trying to find her.

"The bullet?" Eun Soo asked concerned. "Were you able to take it out?"

Ha Kyung didn't seem to understand and Eun Soo looked at him in horror. "We need to take the bullet out. It's like a small pointed rock made of metal. I don't know where it's lodged inside, I might have internal bleeding."

The doctor looked at her as if she was talking in a foreign language but as Eun Soo tried to sit up with the intention of taking the bandage off and checking on her wound, the pain made her swoon and she had to lie back down again. She could not operate on herself like this. It just wasn't possible.

Maybe it had lodged somewhere that would not harm her. She knew of some people who lived with bullets inside their bodies. But she had no way to be sure. And without antibiotics she was very much in danger of blood poisoning. She had to find a way. She could not get worse than she already was, else Choi Young would blame himself if anything happened to her. She could not bear the thought of it.

"What's this about a metal?' It was Choi Young who asked softly, looking at Eun Soo. He had gone pale as he listened to their conversation. It didn't seem like she was going to be alright. There was something that was lodged inside her body that could kill her if it wasn't taken out. And it didn't seem like they knew how. And as he looked at her he felt helpless. He didn't know anything about healing a person, all he knew was how to take lives. He'd promised he'd protect her. He'd just gotten her back.

Fear was not something Choi Young knew how to deal with very well. Although he wasn't careless with his life like he was before he'd met Eun Soo, he was still confident of his skills in battle that even when surrounded by enemies he knew he'd find a way out. That no matter how thick the walls, he could charge his way through. Even when he had swords pointed at him, he would assess the situation calmly. Fear was something he only experienced at the thought of loosing her.

At that moment Eun Soo wished she'd left Taizu in the herb gardens to die. And then she felt guilty to even think it. She was a doctor, doctors didn't choose whose life was to be saved. That was their code. But she would have given anything to erase the look in Choi Young's eyes right now.

She gestured with her right hand for him to come closer and he immediately moved to take her hand and sit on her bedside. "I'll be fine." She tried to assure him. "You're not going to get rid of me so easily." Ha Kyung left the room quietly.

Choi Young didn't say anything but the grip on her hand tightened. Eun Soo felt exhausted, she just needed to rest a bit and then she will find a solution later. She needed to talk to Ha Kyung as well. Maybe if she gave him explicit instructions he will be able to take the bullet out. But before she could rest she needed to make this person holding her hand believe that she would be fine. It tore at her heart that she made him feel this way again.

"Hey." She said softly, looking straight into his eyes. She pulled her hand away from his grasp and stuck her pinky finger out pointing towards him. She smiled knowing he would remember what it meant. He always remembered everything she said. He was never interested on the things she taught him about heaven and he never tried to learn anything as well. But he'd always remembered. Partly because he had really good memory and observation skills but mostly because no matter how disinterested he might seem, his mind would always focus on her whenever she was near, as if she was his whole world and there was no one else.

It almost broke her heart when he slowly raised his own hand and linked his pinky finger into hers. Tears clogged her throat, making it hard to speak. "I will never leave you again." She managed to get the words out whilst keeping her smile. She gestured with her thumb to meet his and he replied in kind. "I promise." She said as their thumbs met.

He nodded. She closed her eyes still smiling and fell into slumber. And that's when the King arrived with Do Chi and some of the Wu Dal Chis guarding him. He went inside the room alone, while his entourage waited outside. Choi Young laid Eun Soo's hand slowly on the bed then got up to give the King a bow.

The King waved his bow away reminding him he didn't need such display when they were alone. "How is she doing?" He asked without really expecting an answer. "I heard from Ha Kyung just a moment ago that she might have been hit by a weapon from the heavens. He said she seemed to recognize what it was the attacker used. That she mentioned needing a metal taken out from her?"

Choi Young nodded. He kept glancing at her, just to assure himself that she was still breathing. Yet he was also worried that the King after just being attacked was roaming around the palace grounds, but he just couldn't muster the strength to give him a lecture about safety.

"In that case, she should be fine if you took her to heaven." The King concluded. "They should know how to cure her there."

Choi Young's eyes widened at the king's words. "It will take days to travel to the gate. And then we don't know if the gate is open or when it will open."

"It is still better than not doing anything." The King replied calmly. "Ha Kyung says it takes years to gain the knowledge that Eui Seon has of healing, even if she tries to teach him which she is not in the condition to do so."

Choi Young wanted to grab at any chance he had of saving her. However he had decided a long time ago not to turn his back on his duty. That he would not run away like his master did. The kingdom was in the midst of preparing for war. They had two hundred thousand men coming to take their capital. Now was not really the time to leave. And yet, if he had to choose between the kingdom and Eun Soo. There was really no choice. She still came first.

But she would not like it. She had worked really hard so as not to take him away. And even from before, she would hide things from him just as to not place him in a situation where he had to turn away from his duty. She even went as far as risk her life for it.

The King had on a wry grin as he watched his general. "The preparations for war is done, all that's left is the execution. I believe I have a lot of other capable generals that can take your place." Then he came nearer as he continued. "Don't misunderstand though. I am not releasing you and neither am I releasing her. I am merely sending you on a mission to cure a person who's life is important to the kingdom. You are both to come back once she is well. I'll do my best not to loose my throne until then." He said the last part in an amused tone.

Since the King had put it that way, Choi Young could not disagree.

...

Taizu was sitting on a bed inside an inn on the outskirts of Gaegyeong. He had an unsheathed sword placed on the bed beside him and he had just taken the silencer off his gun and began polishing it with a piece of cloth. That's when the messenger came in silently through the window and knelt before him. Taizu didn't even bother to look up.

"Choi Young is taking the heavenly doctor to the gate." The messenger reported. "It seems she is still alive although everyone in the palace seems to be worried about her dying." He had his head bowed whilst saying this but he raised his head as he continued. "I wonder how she survived, I've known you to never miss a target. And you were shooting to kill, were you not?"

Instead of answering Taizu took a folded piece of paper from his robe and gave it to the messenger. The messenger stood to take it. "Give that to general Sha Liu. It is a written authority for him to control the troops." He had just finished polishing his gun and had placed it on the bed beside the sword.

"You are not going to lead the invasion?" The messenger asked in surprise. Then he spoke as if in observation. "I don't think that's what the master wanted."

Taizu shrugged. "I already did my part. They can win the war without me. I have something I need to do." Just as he finished speaking he grabbed his sword from the bed noticing an intruder. "Were you followed?" He asked the messenger in exasperation. But as he turned to face the man, he was no longer there.

A hooded figure burst through the window with a sword aimed at him. Taizu parried it easily and countered with a slash of his own sword. But the intruder swiftly turned and twirled away, avoiding his sword whilst throwing a dagger at him. The dagger narrowly missed Taizu's cheek as he dodged. Without pause the intruder flew towards him with his sword pointing straight at Taizu's chest. This time instead of parrying, Taizu cloaked his hand with air and stopped the sword. With his other hand he blew the hood off the intruder's head. It was a woman.

"That's so unfair." The woman complained in Chinese. "You don't use your powers in a sword fight, that's just wrong." She pouted as she withdrew her sword.

The woman was young, about eighteen or nineteen and she was very pretty. She had long dark hair that was parted at the middle into two thick braids which hang on the front of her shoulders.

"What are you doing here Xinghua?" Taizu said in annoyance. He was now speaking in Chinese as well. "Your father is going to kill me if he finds out you have ventured into enemy territory."

Guo Xinghua's eyes narrowed in anger at the mention of her father. "If I don't kill you both first, then you are free to kill each other." Then she pointed her sword once more at him. This time Taizu neither parried nor dodged. He just stood there with the tip of her sword near his neck. "How could you Yuanzhang! How could you do this to me?" her voice was laced with hurt and anger. "Why did you consent to the marriage when we both know you have no feelings for me."

"You're still acting like a child." Taizu was getting really annoyed at this turn of events, and he usually didn't get annoyed so easily. In fact he was so busy with the many situations he had to calculate in his head he rarely had time for any type of emotion. But at the moment he felt annoyed at the messenger for allowing a slip of a girl to shadow him and this girl who was full of emotion of all the wrong kinds. "A marriage is created for the sole purpose of families gaining an advantage. Your father is in need of a strong heir and I need his backing to consolidate my authority."

She rolled her eyes at him, but withdrew her sword once more. "That's what's so unattractive about you. You are just too ambitious for your own good and you make no secret about it. What about duty and honor?" She asked dramatically. "What about love?" Then she sighed. "You have no space for a woman at all in your heart. I can't marry someone like you. Never!"

"Then you have someone you like?" He asked plainly.

She pursed her lips at him then turned around and sat on his bed, placing her sword beside her. "No, not really." She admitted. "All the men I've met so far are so boring that you actually become quite interesting in comparison. And that's saying a lot because you are still very boring."

"Well then," He said facing her. "Since there is no exact date for the wedding yet, I'll give you time. Just stay engaged to me until you find this paragon of a man you are after. When you finally give up on him, you can marry me."

"You sound so sure of yourself." She said with narrowed eyes. "I don't give up so easily you know."

"I know." He answered. But he also knew she would eventually marry him and they were just wasting time with this conversation. Fate was not something written in the stars. Fate was written by people. And he happened to be one of those people.

...

Eun Soo was hot with fever and her breathing was even worse than before. They had already gone past the village of Pogu after crossing the Amrok River by boat, thus the heaven's gate was just a matter of hours away. Choi Young had placed Eun Soo into the carriage waiting for them on the other side of the river. The carriage had been prepared by Dae Man whom Choi Young had ordered to go on ahead. After which, he had him go ahead towards the gate to report whether it was open or not so they could just stop by the nearest town if it wasn't open yet.

As the carriage was jolted again by the rocky road they were travelling on, Eun Soo came back to full consciousness. Looking at where she was, it wasn't hard to guess what was happening. "We don't know if the gate would be open." She said softly. Judging by her heart rate and her fever Eun Soo knew she was sick with Septicemia. Although the fact that Choi Young was riding in the carriage beside her would have told her already that her condition was bad. The last time when he had prepared a carriage for her was to bring her back to Gaegyeong. She had asked if he would ride with her. He had looked horrified at the thought. Thus she decided to ride on horseback with him instead.

Thinking about her situation Eun Soo deduced that going back to the future was the best solution at the moment. Judging by the signs, the infection was spreading throughout her blood and if it becomes a widespread inflammation it could cause damage to her organs.

Choi Young who was holding her close knew exactly when she returned to consciousness. But he didn't know if he should be relieved or more concerned. At least if she was asleep she would not be suffering. "I have asked Dae Man to check on it." he replied without looking at her. He couldn't bear to meet her eyes.

"If I tell you to let me go across the gate by myself, you would not agree I suppose." She said weakly. "Not even if I tell you I can just get someone to call 119 and there will be doctors who will come rushing to my aid." He didn't answer, but then he didn't have to. "The Red Turban will be attacking the palace while you are gone." She said sadly. Once more taking care of her had taken him away from the place where he should be. She had tried really hard this time. But still to no avail. It was as if the world itself was rejecting her existence and was taking it out on him. Was she not meant to be in this world after all?

"Don't even think it." This time he finally looked at her and there was anger in his eyes as if he'd read her thoughts. "This is my fault and not yours. I should have been more vigilant. You saved my life by risking yours. The fault completely lies in me." Then he looked away. "And besides, this is the King's order. It is my duty to get you there safely and take you back. Even the retainers have agreed to this decision. Your plan to be one with the kingdom must be working."

"I saved him." Eun soo said in a low voice. He wouldn't have heard her had she not been resting her head on his shoulder still. She felt him stiffen at her words. "He was dying in the gardens and I saved him. I could say I knew he was the one who saved the child and that I had to save his life in return but that would just be an excuse. I just could not let him die."

The anger was gone in Choi Young's eyes as he looked at her once more. He knew that expression on her face. It was the same anguish as when she realized she had just healed someone who was going to kill him in the future. "Why was I not informed of this? Deok Man should have been with you."

"I had him take my tools from my room at the time." She had closed her eyes although she was still wide awake. "I could not tell anyone except Deo Ki who I had sworn to silence. They would not have allowed me to heal him otherwise."

But Choi Young had stopped listening to her halfway. He could hear footsteps running towards them and he knew by the sound of their strides that they were not civilians. He gripped his sword tightly and called out the window to Hoon Jin who was riding beside them on a horse. "Protect the royal doctor at all cost." Hoon Jin understood immediately that there was impending danger. He passed the message quickly to the other Wu Dal Chi's guarding the carriage.

Eun Soo had stopped leaning on Choi Young the moment he had called out to Hoon Jin. She didn't even bother asking what was happening. She just looked at him ready for him to give instructions.

The carriage had stopped and Choi Young knelt in front of Eun Soo with a hand on each of her shoulders. "Imja, don't ever blame yourself for saving a life." His eyes were full of concern for her, then it turned cold. "But if I ever see him again, I will kill him."

Eun Soo could not respond as sounds of alarm could be heard outside. "Stay inside the carriage, no matter what happens. Could you do that?" Choi Young asked.

Eun Soo nodded and Choi Young rushed out of the carriage to assess the situation. Everyone was off their horses and Ha Kyung was standing behind Hoon Jin, who had his sword out ready to fight. He wasn't a fighter like Jang Bin was, however he still looked calm which Choi Young appreciated. He pulled Ha Kyung into the carriage. "Protect her." He told him as he pushed him inside.

He looked ahead to see what had stopped the carriage from moving. There were about twenty men standing on the road blocking their path. They were all holding swords and from the look of them they were definitely the wokou. From the reports he had of them, he knew they would sometimes use poisoned arrows so he scanned the surroundings for archers but there didn't seem to be any.

He moved forward to face the leader of the group who was standing in front of the others. Or at least he should be the leader as he was wearing polished armor while the rest were in commoner clothing. "We don't hold anything of value here, attacking us is pointless." Choi Young declared without expecting them to really understand. Besides even if they understood him he already knew what they wanted. The wokou would not just attack ordinary citizens on the road without knowledge of the valuables they carry. And when they do attack, it would be an ambush to make sure they surprised the enemy and be gone before anyone can call for reinforcements. That they were being cautious meant they wanted someone alive.

One of the wokou standing behind their leader moved forward to speak with him. The leader said something back in japanese then the wokou speaking with him looked at Choi Young. "You can all go. We just want the girl." His command of the Korean language was bad but the meaning came through.

"She's not in good condition. If you take her she might die." Choi Young responded but he was really getting annoyed. He wanted to go check on Eun Soo to make sure she had not gotten worse.

The leader and his subordinate were talking once more. "We will take her where she can be cured. Give her or you all die."

 _He should not have said anything._ Choi Young thought. They were wasting time. He closed his eyes and sighed then drew his sword. The Wokou charged as he did this. "Stand behind and watch the carriage." He commanded the Wu Dal Chis, throwing his scabbard at Hoon Jin. "Kill anyone who comes near it."

With a slash of his sword he killed the first three men who came charging. Then he pivoted and kicked the next one with his left foot then twirled vertically to kick another with his right. He came down in a crouching position, turned and slashed the foot of another, then stood up hitting another wokou's chin with the hilt of his sword then twirling his blade slashed the head of the next one. He then shifted the sword to his left hand and slashed the other two on his left who tried to get past him.

One wokou who managed to get through, met with Hoon Jin's sword as he tried to get near the carriage. The rest of the wokou was now backing up reassessing their situation. The leader became apprehensive as he watched the carnage on the ground. All that done by one man alone. They had not expected the rumors to be true. He had been warned by another group leader that the general Choi Young would be guarding the woman. That his prowess in battle was legendary. He had snorted at such warning. Praises on the battlefield were usually heaped on the leader when it was actually his men who did all the work. It seemed in this case he was severely mistaken.

But he could not retreat now. His reputation was at stake. The other groups would laugh at them if they turn tail and run. They were fighting only six people, not to mention the other five was merely guarding the carriage, so in effect they were just fighting one man. He drew his sword, summoning his courage and rushed towards Choi Young.

That was when Dae Man arrived tumbling and kicking the leader to the ground. "The gate has opened!" He said in excitement. "It is open right now!"

Choi Young faced the rest of the wokou then raised his hands to summon lightning. As the lightning crackled on his hands the wokou fled, dragging their leader with them. They could not expect to win over such a monster.

And Hoon Jin was there leading a horse to Choi Young. Ha Kyung and Eun Soo had gotten out of the carriage with Eun Soo leaning heavily on the royal doctor. Choi Young gave his sword to Dae Man and wasted no time in getting into the horse. He reigned it near where the royal doctor and Eun Soo stood.

He met Ha Kyung's eyes and Ha Kyung took Eun Soo in his arms to pass her on to Choi Young. Eun Soo was too weak to even be surprised. He kicked on the horse and they rushed towards the gate.

...

A man carrying a woman in his arms had jumped off his horse and was walking hurriedly towards the opened gate.

Taizu was standing near a tree, about a hundred meters away from the gate using his binoculars to observe the area around it. "So you are letting her go." Suddenly the messenger was standing beside him, calmly observing as well.

Taizu had on a troubled expression as he took the binoculars off his eyes. It wasn't meant to happen that way. He could not have made a mistake. How did Choi Young manage to enter the portal?

"I don't think the master will be happy about this." The messenger continued in an emotionless voice. "If Choi Young doesn't come back, all the work we have done so far will be for nothing."

Taizu looked at the messenger in annoyance. "You don't have to tell me that." He threw the binoculars at the messenger who caught it without effort. "I'll fix it."

...

On the other side of the gate Eun Soo was doing her best to convince Choi Young to go back. It was still night time in the world of 2012 and from experience she knew only minutes had passed since she had left this world. She had already stopped a passersby to request for the person to call 119. Seeing her pale face, the blood that had seeped out of the left side of her clothes, and the fear in the eyes of the man carrying her, the woman had obliged.

Choi Young was not in his warrior armor which Eun Soo was thankful about. He still looked really out of place in his robes but it was still much better than armor. "Please, an ambulance will be here soon to take me to the hospital. I will be fine. You need to go back to the door before it closes." She held his face with both hands willing for him to understand. "I will go as soon as I am well. I will find you again, you know I will."

She made sense, Choi Young knew this. When he had kidnapped her, a huge amount of soldiers had come quickly to her rescue, it was easy to believe the same thing would happen now that she had notified someone she was back. And a part of him was concerned about the attack on Gaegyeong as well as the well being of the King and Queen. But he couldn't let her go. His arms just wouldn't comply. Instead he held her closer. And just like that the gate closed.

Eun Soo looked at him with concern in her eyes which he found ironic since she was the one in grave danger of dying. He could hear the sound of a siren getting louder and at any other time he would have looked around for the source of the sound. But her eyes had captured him and he could not look anywhere else. "Don't fight anyone." She was saying. "They will take me away. Let me go and they will take care of me. Just simply follow and they will probably let you in the ambulance with me. If anyone asks any questions don't say anything. Act like you don't understand." Then she closed her eyes as if depleted of all her strength. "If we become separated just go back to the gate and I'll come find you."

Then she lost consciousness once more.

...

NEXT Chapter 5: Can I Stay by Your Side? – Choi Young has never seen Eun Soo so relaxed and happy as she is while in Heaven. As the two wait for the gate to open again Choi Young begins to have doubts about bringing her back. And it seems that someone else doesn't want her to go back with him either.

Author's notes: Got stuck on the battle scene and had to stare at my screen for hours trying to visualize a fight. I came up with pure crap. I'll do better in the next chapters I hope. I'm so sleepy now. Goodnight.


	5. Chapter 5: Can I Stay by Your Side?

Chapter 5: Can I Stay by Your Side?

Author's Notes: I'm late again. Okay, you guys might be right about the future thing. I've had a hard time writing this chapter that I wanted to skip to the next one. I don't know about ordinary, I think complicated is a much better word to describe it. This chapter has turned out to be a huge headache. And it's pretty long too. But Thanks **Hikari Urania** for looking forward to it, your comments urges me on.

Anyway, I found out something amazing while I was doing research, so it seemed grass never grew on Choi Young's grave until 1979. I did some math, the movie date was 2012 and Eun Soo was 33 years old. That means she was born on 1979. Cool huh?

 _edits: Changed the capital name of Goryeo from Kaesong to Gaegyeong. It's still the same place but it seemed to have been called that during the Goryeo period. So I rewatched the series and realzed they really used that name. My mistake._

-same disclaimer as previous chapters-

...

As soon as she regained consciousness only one thought came into her mind. And as she opened her eyes she immediately sought his face. But he wasn't there.

Eun Soo sat up worried. Immediately a sharp pain began to register on her side. She winced but decided to ignore it. Her fever was gone and her breathing had returned to normal. The pain was something she could endure.

As she tried to get off the bed she noticed there was an ivy in her wrist and she was severely tempted to pull it off so she could leave. That amused her a bit. She'd always seen that in movies but in her many years as a doctor she had not met a patient who had done that yet. Not purposely at least. Her amusement turned into a smile as she imagined Choi Young in her position. Yes, he would definitely pull it off, no doubt about it.

A nurse came in while she was contemplating on whether pull the ivy off or not. "You're awake." The nurse said smiling. "How are you feeling?"

"The man who was with me, have you seen him?" Eun Soo asked instead of answering. Eun Soo knew Choi Young came with her to the hospital. She had regained consciousness multiple times on the way to the emergency room. He had been on the ambulance with her and had followed her up to the operating room doors.

The nurse had a blank look at first but then her face brightened seconds later as she realized who she meant. How could she forget. The nurse had been there when Eun Soo was brought to the hospital. All the nurses who saw him noticed him. He had on odd black robes which made him look like he just came out of a sageuk movie. But that wasn't what drew their attention. They worked at a huge hospital thus they had their share of weird patients. But this man was mind-blowingly handsome. For some reason the old fashioned robes looked so good on him it was hard to imagine him wearing anything else. And all the way to the operating room not once had he taken his eyes off the patient. He had not said anything but the way he held her hand and the concern in his expression, it was like his soul was linked to hers and that he would not be able to exist if she would not survive. At that moment they would have given anything to be on her shoes, even if it meant taking a bullet.

Then her expression clouded as she remembered what happened later. "The police took him." The nurse said with regret in her voice. "We had to report the gun shot wound and the police came later and arrested him. We thought for sure he was your husband so we were really surprised when the police said he was a suspect for attempted murder and kidnapping."

Whatever color had come back into Eun Soo's face began to drain away. "How long have I been asleep?" She asked as panic slowly crept in.

"Two days." The nurse replied then her eyes widened in shock as Eun Soo tore off the ivy from her wrist and got off the bed in a rush. She experienced a moment of dizziness and she had to hold on to the side of the bed until it faded but the moment it was gone she started looking for her clothes and shoes ignoring the growing pain on her waist.

"You should be resting." The nurse said in concern. "You just got out of surgery, you should not be moving around."

But Eun Soo wasn't listening. She grabbed the phone on the bedside table and dialed out to her office giving explicit instructions for funds to be wired into the hospital to take care of her bills. Then she faced the nurse. "Tell the doctor assigned to me that I will sign a waver of discharge against medical advice." Eun Soo instructed knowing that they would not allow her to leave otherwise, as she herself would not advice it. "And please get me my clothes." Then remembering what she had been wearing she changed her mind. "On second thought don't bother."

She called a boutique in Gangnam for clothes to be delivered to her room. They did not normally do delivery but the owner was her friend and client. Then she called her office again for payment to be wired to the boutique. It took about an hour for her to process everything, including her release papers. It felt like the longest hour in her life.

...

Inspector Park Shin Hwa was beginning to get really frustrated. The suspect had not said a word since they've arrested him and it didn't seem like he would budge. It didn't seem like he didn't understand either. He looked at them as if he was just being patient and was bidding for time. He knew they could not hold him forever.

It also didn't seem like he was crazy as they had first thought when watching the videos of the crime scene. His partner had suggested that maybe he might be mute but seeing the intelligent look on the suspect's eyes Shin Hwa was more inclined to believe he was merely being smart by maintaining his silence.

The problem was that they could not identify him. He didn't have any IDs and his finger prints and profile didn't match anyone on their database. He did look exactly like the person who had committed the crime, that they had been really confident when they made the arrest. However there was one problem. This person sported a stubble of a beard that the person who committed the crime in the videos did not. And they had arrested him that way two days ago just a few hours after the kidnapping. It was impossible to grow a beard like that in a matter of hours. His partner had actually checked to see if the beard was fake in which that was the only time they saw a real expression on the suspect's face. For a moment he thought he saw murder in his eyes but then the expression was gone in an instant that it was easier to believe he was just seeing things.

"You're really not going to tell us who you are?" His partner Kim Je Woo was asking the suspect. They were back in the interrogating room with the suspect sitting with hand cuffs on the other side of the table and both the detectives on the other. The impassive expression on the suspect's face had not changed. "You are just making things harder on yourself." he continued. "We don't really want to keep you here if you are innocent. If you were not the one who committed the crime two days ago, just say so. Give us your identity and tell us where we can contact you and we will let you go, easy right?" He looked to be genuinely concerned about the suspect's welfare.

Unlike Shin Hwa, Je Woo was kind of a softie. He was always calm and understanding and he wanted to believe the best out of people. He also enjoyed his work and never complained about anything. He was a rarity in the police department and the only reason he had his position was because for some reason his approach had garnered him a lot of confessions from criminals that it was kind of spooky. Those who had tried to imitate his way of investigating never got the same results.

It didn't seem to work on this particular suspect though. Nothing was working on him. This placed Shin Hwa in a dilemma. In one hand, he was free to hold the suspect until they found out his identity, in another, it seemed that it would just be a waste of time as he haven't shown any signs of wearing out in the last two days. There was a possibility that he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and they were just pursuing a dead end.

Outside the investigation room, Jung Joon Kyo, who was Shin Hwa's subordinate experienced another kind of dilemma while talking to the lady who was insisting on seeing the inspector in charge of the kidnapping incident two days ago. On further inspection she seemed to be telling the truth. She looked exactly like the woman who was kidnapped just as he had seen on the television news. She had even showed him her IDs that proved her name was Yoo Eun Soo, the same name that was broadcasted as the plastic surgeon who was the victim that night. However, Shin Hwa had given him explicit instructions never to bother him when he was interrogating a suspect.

"Please, I have urgent information regarding the incident." The lady was saying. "I'm sure he will want to see me."

Joon Kyo looked uncomfortable as he tried to make a decision. "I can just take your statement right now and pass it on to him when he is available."

"You think I can just tell anyone?" The woman's voice was now getting hysterical. "Do you want your case solved or not?

Joon Kyo glanced at the investigation room which was a mistake. The moment Eun Soo got a hint on where the inspector was, she immediately ran past Joon Kyo into the investigation room he was eyeing. She passed by the window and saw Choi Young on the other side which spurred her to open the door in haste. When she found the door locked, she banged on it a couple of times that Shin Hwa stood to open the door to see what was going on.

Joon Kyo who had followed Eun Soo in haste grimaced apologetically at Shin Hwa as the door opened. "I'm sorry, I tried to stop her..."

Seeing Eun Soo at the door Choi Young immediately stood to go to her. Je Woo tried to stop him but was pushed aside easily by Choi Young who he noticed in surprise no longer had cuffs. He fell into a chair which capsized into the floor.

Shin Hwa immediately blocked Choi Young's path, shielding Eun Soo with the intention of protecting her from him. But Eun Soo pushed him aside and Choi Young stepped closer to her, holding both her shoulders with his hands. "Imja, are you okay?" He was clearly concerned.

Eun Soo nodded, happy to see him. She inspected him to see if he was hurt anywhere then seeing he was fine asked. "You didn't get into any fights, right?"

It was Choi Young's turn to nod and Eun Soo let out a huge breath of relief. At first she was worried that he had resisted arrest and had gotten shot by the process. But then knowing his resiliency, she began to worry that he had harmed someone, because then it would be hard to fight for his release if he had. She faced the inspector who she had pushed aside. "You have the wrong person. This person saved me. He is the one who rescued me and brought me to the hospital."

Shin Hwa looked at her curiously. "And you are?"

"Yoo Eun Soo." She said, now fully facing him, making Choi Young drop his hands. "I was the person kidnapped and reported shot."

Shin Hwa looked at Joon Kyo for confirmation and Joon Kyo nodded. "She showed me her IDs."

"I might not be well versed with police laws but I don't think its legal for you to be holding an innocent man like this." Eun Soo said indignantly. "Do you even have any grounds to charge him with?"

"We got a warrant of detention." This came from Je Woo who had now stood up and was fixing his suit calmly. "The suspect has no identification and is refusing to give us any. We have advised him of his rights and he has not asked to seek counsel. In lieu with the possibility that he can just disappear without a trace, we can detain him as long as we want. We are not just talking about a kidnapping here Ms. Yoo. This case also includes attempted murder."

"And I'm telling you, he is not the same person." Eun Soo interjected. "I wouldn't be sticking up for a person who kidnapped me now would I? And if it's contacting him that's the problem then I can take responsibility for him. I will give you my apartment address and phone number. You already have my work phone and address I believe."

"He is staying with you?" Shin Hwa looked at her in surprise.

Eun Soo sighed. "Yes, and there is no point in asking him questions anyway, he has amnesia." Eun Soo replied thinking quickly. "The kidnapper had taken him first before me, that psycho has this obsession with the Goryeo period and dresses his victims in that time period's clothing. I think he's mentally ill."

"We received a report that you actually came back minutes after the kidnapping dressed in weird clothes but that you left in a hurry after taking medical supplies." Je Woo said curiously.

"Right. That crazy person said he would harm him if I didn't do what he said." Eun Soo responded quickly. "Look, I'm really tired. I just got out of the hospital. Can we have this conversation at a later time?" Then she gave him a slip of paper with her address and phone number. "Here, you can reach me there or at my office at any time."

"Wait." Shin Hwa took the paper. "You said he has amnesia. So you don't really know him as well right? Are you sure it's safe to harbor a stranger?" He looked at Choi Young suspiciously as he said this. "Do you even know his name?"

All this time Eun Soo was speaking with the inspectors, Choi Young was merely watching her. She was making excuses for his presence and although he was loathe to make her do all the work he didn't want to say anything that could ruin her plans. She always had plans.

"His name is Choi Young." Eun Soo's response was immediate. Both inspectors looked at her with amusement. Joon Kyo's eyes widened in surprise.

"You are joking right?" Shin Hwa scoffed. "Choi Young, like the legendary general Choi Young?"

"Treat gold like stone." Joon Kyo quipped in a singsong voice.

Finally Choi Young took his eyes off Eun Soo as he looked at the inspectors with curiosity and some amazement. It was now Eun Soo's turn to watch him, and as he looked back at her, her eyes sparkled with amusement as if saying. _I told you you were famous in heaven._

She kept her eyes on Choi Young as she explained. "It's a name the psycho kidnapper gave him. He has amnesia and I don't know where that psychopath hid his belongings." Then she faced Shin Hwa again. "But if ever his memory should return, I will make sure to notify you."

There was nothing else they could do. Shin Hwa gave Eun Soo his card. "If anything suspicious comes up at all, don't hesitate to call." He said, his eyes on Choi Young.

Eun Soo took the card and nodded. With that she took Choi Young's wrist and proceeded to leave. "And don't leave the country." He added before they left.

Je Woo picked up the cuffs on the table and inspected the burnt key holes. As Shin Hwa turned towards him, he quickly hid the cuffs on his pocket. "I guess we are back to square one."

...

Eun Soo unlocked the door to her apartment which was located on the 6th floor and went inside followed by Choi Young who looked around the place curiously. After placing her bag on the living room table Eun Soo headed towards the fridge and took a bottle of soju, opened it and drank from the bottle. She immediately felt better. She took another bottle and offered it to Choi Young who remained standing in the living room. He shook his head as he looked at the bottle knowing instantly that it was alcohol. He'd never met a woman who liked to drink as much as she did but he didn't stop her. She must have gone through a lot after not finding him with her when she woke up.

"Are you sure you are alright?" Those people had taken him after the doctor had assured him Eun Soo was safe which was the only reason Choi Young managed to follow her instructions and not kill them when they tried to take him away from her. But still, her condition had been really bad two days ago and now she was walking around as if nothing happened.

Eun Soo placed the bottle down on the kitchen counter and walked to Choi Young with a smile of assurance. "I feel perfectly fine. The wound hurts sometimes but nothing a few aspirins couldn't suppress. Staying in your world must have made me more resilient." Then she couldn't help chuckling as she looked at him standing there in his black robes. He looked so out of place in her little modern apartment. "I don't know when the gate will open again, but I think we need to get you some appropriate clothes."

That's when Choi Young noticed she had on clothing that was similar to what she had been wearing when he first saw her, except that the lower garments fit snugly into her legs unlike the last time. And her top was a shade of dark and light yellows and had a really huge neckline which had slipped into one side baring her left shoulder. He immediately looked away in the pretense of checking her furniture. He had held those shoulders just a few hours ago, but at that time he had been too concerned about her to notice that they were almost bare.

Seeing him look away, Eun Soo fixed the neckline of her shirt to cover as much as she can. She'd never met a man like him. He was bossy and had a huge temper and yet at times he was also so sweet and eager to please. He was also a man of his word, someone who would rather die than break his promise. She had been really scared when he hadn't been there when she woke up. She never wanted to loose sight of him again. She remembered the fortune teller from before saying that not everyone was fortunate enough to meet their heaven sent man and that she would find hers from the past. She had never expected it to be so literal. But since she'd managed to find him she decided to never let him go.

With that thought, Eun Soo took a step closer and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting the left side of her head on his chest. As she was wearing indoor slippers her head barely reached his shoulders.

Choi Young looked down at her in surprise. Then as he wrapped his arms slowly around her careful of her wound, she closed her eyes and snuggled closer.

The comfort she felt being in his arms was something that would have alarmed her in the past. She had never really allowed herself to care this deeply about someone and it had nothing to do with a wound from her past or anything dramatic like that. It was just the way she was. If she would use what she'd learned in psychology to diagnose herself, she would say she was scared of falling in love. But it was too late to back away anymore. This person had taken a hold of her heart and she would probably not survive loosing him.

"I'd like to show you my world. Do you want to go somewhere while waiting for the door to open?" Eun Soo asked, listening to the steady beat of his heart. "I believe the door is an anomaly resulting from a sunspot, thus if it happens again we will surely hear it on the news.

When he didn't answer, she raised her head up without removing herself from his embrace. He was looking down at her with concern. "Are you sure you are well enough to be going around, don't you need more rest?"

Eun Soo grinned at that. "You are such a worry wart. If I ever feel tired, you could always carry me." The truth was that Eun Soo was actually trying to find ways to preoccupy him, afraid that he would be constantly thinking about the palace he had left behind. Choi Young had a strong sense of duty and thus he would be devastated if anything happened to the King while he was away. She wasn't sure when the door would open and she didn't really know what would be the effects of their prolonged stay in her world so she couldn't reassure him about those things. However, she did decide to purchase a history book just to keep track if anything had changed.

Choi Young surprised her by agreeing. "If you promise not to do anything strenuous, I'll go anywhere you want."

Eun Soo pulled back a little to stare at him. "Really?" She had expected to cajole and push just to get him to agree as he'd never really expressed any interest in her world. When he nodded Eun Soo smiled brightly, her eyes shining with excitement. "I actually get to date my boyfriend." She teased.

Choi Young looked at her curiously. "What does that word mean?"

"Boyfriend?" Eun Soo looked upwards to think on how to describe it to him. "Uhm... I guess it's quite similar to partner, except that partners don't do this." She stood up on her toes and gave him a light smack on the lips. Then she walked away to the kitchen with Choi Young looking after her in surprise.

She took the soju bottle she had placed on the counter and drank from it. "I've always wanted to go on a date to an amusement park but I've been too busy and the people I've dated weren't really the type to go there." She took another swig from the bottle. "You don't look like the type either, but I am finally on a leave of absence because of my wound, and you've never been to my world before, well except for when you kidnapped me, anyway I would like to take you somewhere fun..."

Her voice trailed off as she realized Choi Young had moved to stand behind her. He took the bottle off her hands and placed it back on the counter. Then he fixed the shirt which had dropped off her left shoulder again and laid a hand on her forehead to check her temperature. She didn't feel hot which assured him a little. "Let's do all that tomorrow. First you need to get some rest."

Eun Soo leaned back on his chest and nodded. Surrendering her heart to someone didn't seem to be so bad at all.

...

Eun Soo took back her statement from before. _This person would definitely not end up being alone in her world._ She thought wryly. She woke up the next morning to find he had shaved which made her a bit apprehensive as it was the only thing that could prove he was a different person from the one who kidnapped her. "We will be gone before they come." was his only answer. She didn't have the heart to contradict him.

Then they went to get him some clothes. She didn't have any male clothing in her apartment, as her apartment was fairly new and she had been living alone since she got it. So they went to her friend's boutique, and not really one for male fashion Eun Soo left the decision to her friend. And just like that he came out looking like a male model from a magazine.

"What?" He asked as he looked at the thoughtful expression on her face.

Eun Soo crossed her arms on her chest as she continued to study him. He was not really wearing anything special, just simple black jeans and a checkered button up shirt in shades of gray. It wasn't the clothes that made him stand out. Wearing everyday modern clothes made his personality meld into the background and for the first time Eun Soo was actually able to focus on his appearance. He was heart-stoppingly handsome that he would probably make a sack look like model material.

Eun Soo merely shook her head in response to his question. She was wearing a short sleeved pearl top with dark blue pedal jeans that went down to her knees. And she had on a pair of black high heeled sandals. She had purposely worn something that showed off her legs as to prepare him of what he would be seeing outside. But he didn't say anything as to her clothes. He didn't complain about the clothes he was wearing either, although she knew he must feel uncomfortable with them as he wasn't used to such clothing. He was adapting better than she thought he would.

Then she went and hailed a cab. The taxi was also one thing he had adapted to pretty well. On the way to her apartment she had been afraid he wouldn't get into one, but although he looked uncomfortable with it, he went inside after her without saying a word.

The amount of people in the park took him a bit of getting used to. He looked tense as if he had to protect her from the throngs of people. Eun Soo pulled at the hand holding hers to get his attention. "No one is trying to harm me here. I'm no one special, I'm just like any one of them."

Choi Young looked at her as if he couldn't believe it. Didn't a carriage filled with doctors come rushing to her after she had notified them of her situation. And the guards, they actually sent an army of them to save her when he'd taken her. And those people who took him, weren't they also trying to protect her as well. If she had that many people trying to protect her in this world then how was she not special?

"Look, you trust me right?" Eun Soo insisted. "Everyone here, they are just trying to have fun. And so are we. So stop worrying too much, okay?" She smiled so prettily at him that he had to smile back. She wouldn't really put herself at risk so if they had to be careful she would not have said otherwise.

Trying to free himself of his worries, he looked around and studied the huge different structures that the place was full of. They all seem to be some sort of vehicle that went nowhere and was there for people to ride for amusement. There didn't seem to be anyone driving the things and he wondered what power the people in heaven used to make them move. Whatever it was, it looked like people in this world had a lot of ingenuity. They also seem to have a lot of time to waste.

He promptly changed his mind about the ingenuity of heaven after managing to get into three rides. These people were crazy. And Eun Soo had berated him for not valuing his life. At least he was fulfilling his duties when he risked his life to fight Gi Chul, and he was also protecting her. But the people in heaven appeared to like risking their lives for no apparent reason. And they actually labelled it as fun after screaming in fear the entire time.

But Eun Soo seemed to be enjoying herself, and she was now smiling happily as she sipped on some beverage she had bought. He hadn't touched the one he was holding although he had accepted it when she gave it to him. The food in heaven had a lot of flavors that he wasn't used to.

He liked seeing her this carefree. Although she still smiled a lot back in his world he'd never seen her this happy. Her stride had an almost skip to it and she swung the hand she was holding as if her entire body was just so full of life to keep still. His heart lifted just by looking at her. He'd endure a thousand more of those rides if it made her this happy.

Then she suddenly stopped.

"Eun Soo-yah?" A man with a girl clinging on his arm stopped walking as he saw her.

"Seonbae?" Eun Soo said in surprise. It had been years since she'd seen him. Jung Min had been her boyfriend for 3 years and 4 months but they had broken up because he had wanted to date some woman whose parents were so rich they planned to build a hospital just for him. She wondered if he ever got that hospital built or if the woman in his arms was still that same person. She glanced at the woman holding his arm and saw that she was very pretty in designer jeans and a red blouse. He had told her the woman he was leaving her for was really ugly so this was probably a different person.

"How have you been doing?" Jung Min asked. "I heard you quit the hospital and became a plastic surgeon."

Eun Soo nodded with a smile. "I haven't heard from you for a long time. I didn't expect to meet you here of all places."

"Yeah, I moved to a different city." Then he realized they both have someone with them. "This is my fiance Seon Hye. She's the one that brought me here." The woman smiled at her and Eun Soo nodded in her direction and gave her a smile back. "Eun Soo was a co-worker of mine at the old hospital I worked for." he told his fiance.

"This is Choi Young." Eun Soo introduced. Then she gestured at Jung Min "My Seonbae Jung Min."

"Choi Young?" It was Seon Hye who spoke in surprise. "Like the general Choi Young, hero of Goryeo?"

Choi Young gave them both a courteous bow with just his head. "Yes, the exact same name." Eun Soo replied with amusement.

"Wow, your parents must be quite the history buffs to name you after the great general." The woman sounded excited about it though. "I love history myself, but I've never really thought of naming my kids after historical icons." Then she blushed a bit as she glanced at Jung Min. "I doubt he would agree to that anyway."

"That would be silly." Jung Min replied, his eyes on Eun Soo. "No offense intended." He added addressing Choi Young.

"I guess we should get going." Said Eun Soo. "We were just on our way to get dinner, and it's getting late."

Jung Min laughed at that. "And you should never be late for food." Then he smiled. "We were also on our way to have dinner, why don't you both join us?"

When Eun Soo hesitated Jung Min pushed. "Come on, we haven't seen each other for years. I'm offering dinner at a five star restaurant. The Yoo Eun Soo that I know would never say no to that. "

Eun Soo looked up at Choi Young and he looked down at her with a smile. "I'm okay if imja wants to go."

"Then it's settled then." Jung Min acted as if Eun Soo had already agreed. "My car is over there." he nodded to the direction of a private car park. "I'll drive us."

He moved through the crowd of people expecting them to follow. Eun Soo laced her hands with Choi Young's and followed.

...

She was laughing at Jung Min's joke about a policy in the hospital he worked at. Seon Hye, who Choi Young understood was the woman Jung Min was to marry laughed as well when Eun Soo added her own quips to the joke. Eun Soo was really good with people. She made people feel comfortable with her. Even in his world, she befriended everyone effortlessly. At the moment she was eating the food on her plate as if she was enjoying every morsel of it. She looked really happy.

Suddenly doubts clouded Choi Young's mind. It seemed like in this world she was completely safe. She had people who protected her. People who wanted her company. And all these buildings that were built where she could have fun and enjoy good food. Was it really fair for him to take her away from all of these.

Eun Soo was a bit concerned. All the way back to the apartment Choi Young seemed to be deep in thought and when she asked if there was anything wrong he simply smiled at her. After changing into more comfortable clothes Eun Soo found him standing in the balcony. He was leaning on the railing while watching the city. She moved to stand beside him. "Going to the gate would be this way." She said pointing to the direction of her office which was miles away.

Choi Young looked at where she was pointing then moved his gaze to look at her. Eun Soo gave him a smile. "Do you want to go check on whether the gate has opened?"

He looked away and watched the lights on the billboard of one of the buildings straight ahead. "You said that if it happens you will know, so there should be no need."

Eun Soo took hold of the railing with both hands and with both her feet on the balcony incline she stretched her arms bowing her head downwards, . Then she glanced up at him again. He was looking at her curiously. She chuckled at the expression on his face.

"You seem to be enjoying yourself." Choi Young observed.

Eun Soo beamed a smile as she leaned on the railing the same way he did. "I am happy." She sounded content. He gave her a small smile then went back to gazing at the city.

Was it just her or did his smile look a bit sad. Eun Soo studied him as he watched the tall buildings. He didn't seem to see them as he appeared to be really lost in thought. At first she thought he might be worrying about the palace, but now she believed it was something else.

Choi Young felt guilty. It had been wrong of him to have taken her out of this place. And then he had promised to return her to her world, but he had selfishly broken it by asking her to stay. He thought of going back without her. He felt like someone was squeezing his heart until it was too painful to breathe. She wouldn't agree to it anyway. She had risked her life to stay with him and had ventured into a different world just to find him again. He thought about staying with her in her world instead. She would not agree to that either. And he had also left behind a kingdom at war and a King who expected him to come back. The King had trusted him to let him go and return, how can he even think of letting down such faith.

Eun Soo gazed at the same direction he was looking at, trying to guess at his thoughts. "Do you know why I'm happy?" She asked softly.

"Your world seem to have a lot to offer." He said instead of answering, not looking at her. "Even at night, the lights are so bright you never need to light a candle. And they prepare good food and lots of entertainment. You also don't have to worry about being sick because you have plenty of capable doctors. And you never have to walk to where you need to go."

Eun Soo kept her gaze on his face as he was speaking. When he stopped she leaned her head on his shoulder. "I am just happy I got to spend the whole day with you. You are always so busy it is hard to even see you. But I don't really want to take you away from doing what you believe in. As you can see, the people here adore you, and so do I. I like you the way you are. It's just that, I am happy we get to have this moment at least. I don't really care where we are, as long as I can stay by your side."

Choi Young looked at the woman whose head was resting on his shoulders. He had taken her to his world against her will. She had been in many difficult and dangerous situations since then. And just a few days ago, she almost died because of him. Yet she didn't seem to regret anything and neither did she harbor any doubts about going back to a world that would place her in danger again. Just because she wanted to be with him.

He wanted to tell her how much she meant to him but there were no words. He was never really good with words. Just then she raised her head to look at him, her lips parted as if she was about to say something but stopped when she found him staring intensely right back at her. The movement changed his focus to her lips. He still remembered the feel of those lips on his. Before he knew it, he was lowering his head to claim those lips.

Eun Soo's heart skipped a beat, then it raced in anticipation of his kiss. But just then her phone rang which startled the both of them.

Eun Soo looked towards the living room where she had left her phone inside her bag. Who would be calling her at this time of night? She had bought the phone before going to pick Choi Young up at the police department knowing they would be asking for her contact number. She raised her index finger and gave Choi Young an apologetic look. "Give me a minute."

It was the director at the clinic she was working at. Something urgent had come up and she was needed at the office but he refused to tell her what it was saying he needed to tell her in person. She contemplated about resigning then and there. Since she had no plans of staying in this time period there was really no point in keeping her job. But then courtesy forced her to agree to the meeting. She should at least resign in person and not over the phone.

Choi Young had followed her inside and as soon as the call ended she took a hold of his wrist and dragged him to sit at the couch. Then she turned the television on. He looked surprised as the screen came to life, but he was more interested in what was going on with her than the magical box she had just activated.

"I need to go meet my boss, he said it's urgent." Eun Soo said with a sigh. "That," she said pointing at the television. "is what you call a movie. They are just moving pictures and the people there are not real." She said not really wanting to explain about actors and such. "People in my world make it to tell a story."

Then she went to her room and hurriedly changed. When she picked up her bag Choi Young took his eyes from the screen to look at her. "I'll be back fast." She told him.

Choi Young stood up. "You are going out alone? I'll go with you." He moved towards her intending to do just that.

Eun Soo shook her head. "I don't know what he has to say but I doubt you would be allowed to sit in. And I don't want to have to leave you there alone. So just stay here and don't worry about me. I have lived here by myself for many years, I'll be fine."

Choi Young could not argue with her. He didn't really know much about her world and he didn't want to give her unnecessary difficulties. Still he couldn't help worrying.

"Hey," She said smacking his left shoulder. Choi Young narrowed his eyes at her and Eun Soo laughed. "Enjoy the movie, I'll be back before you know it." And then she was gone.

Choi Young sat back on the couch and looked at the television screen. The man in the movie was in one of those things Eun Soo called "cars" and was following a girl who seemed to be intent on just walking. She got mad at him asking why he was following her which he denied although it was too obvious that he was. Choi Young wondered how the people in this world could be interested in such stories. He leaned back, his head resting on the couch backrest and closed his eyes. He was asleep in mere seconds.

He was awakened by a loud banging on the door. He got up and turned the knob to open it just as Eun Soo had taught him before. It was the same man they met and had dinner with, he remembered him being called Jung Min.

"We need to get to Eun Soo fast. I think she's in trouble." Jung Min seemed to be out of breath as if he had been running up the stairs.

Choi Young was immediately on alert. He got out and followed Jung Min who was leading the way in haste. "What happened?" Choi Young asked as they walked in a fast pace.

"I'm not sure." Jung Min seemed really troubled. "But she called me and told me something bad has happened and that I should get you."

They were now in front of Jung Min's car. He unlocked the driver's seat, got in and opened the front seat door for Choi Young. Choi Young immediately got in and Jung Min started the engine driving fast. Choi Young frowned worriedly. What could have happened that she would call for him. Was he wrong about thinking that she was safe in this world?

Suddenly the car stopped and Choi Young immediately reached for the car door thinking they had arrived. But the door wouldn't open. That was when he felt a prick on his neck. He turned towards Jung Min and saw that he was holding something that looked like the weapon that almost killed Eun Soo. There was fear in Jung Min's eyes and the hand holding the weapon trembled. In anger Choi Young reached for him but his vision clouded. He squeezed his eyes shut and opened it again to try to clear it but the wooziness didn't subside and then there was total darkness.

"I'm sorry." Jung Min said in a trembling voice as he watched the man Eun Soo was dating slump into the car seat fast asleep. "I had no choice." He dropped the tranquilizer gun and reached for the phone in his pocket. He quickly dialed a number. "It's done." He reported in a voice laced with fear. "I... I have him."

...

Eun Soo climbed the stairs to her apartment slowly while deep in thought. The apartment building had an elevator which Eun Soo never used as the unit she owned was only on the 6th floor and it was usually faster to just use the stairs than wait for the elevator to come down. But mostly it was to avoid people who she had to greet and talk to when she was tired from work and just wanted to be alone and drink beer.

At the moment, she was a bit confused. She was sure the number that had registered on her phone was her boss' office number and it was definitely his voice that she heard on the phone. But when she got to the office no one was there and when she called him, no one answered. She even tried his mobile number with the same results.

She reached her room and opened the door. The television didn't seem to be turned on as she couldn't hear sounds coming from it so she wondered what Choi Young was doing. She stopped on her tracks as she saw a man was sitting on her living room couch. It wasn't Choi Young.

The man was lounging comfortably with his arms crossed and his legs crossed at the ankles. He had on black pants and a black long sleeve shirt. His long hair was tied neatly into a queue on his back and he was sitting on the couch facing the door. Eun Soo stood still as she saw him. She didn't have her knife with her, she never thought she would need it here.

He raised both hands up seeing that Eun Soo was glaring daggers at him. "I mean no harm. I just want to talk."

"Where's Choi Young?" This was Eun Soo's first concern.

"He already left." Taizu shrugged nonchalantly. "I opened the gate for him and he left."

Eun Soo didn't believe him for a second. "Stop lying. Where did you take him?"

Taizu sighed as he changed position to sit properly. He gestured to the seat on his left. "Why don't you take a seat and we can talk calmly?"

"Calmly?" Eun Soo scoffed. "You tried to kill me. How can I be calm when I'm facing a murderer."

Taizu actually looked apologetic at that. "Look, if I wanted to kill you, you would have been dead. And as for Choi Young, I don't want him dead either. I merely sent him back to his world where he belongs. And you have to stay here where you belong. He understood this and so he left. Now you need to understand as well. You can't just go changing the future as you please."

"I don't believe you." Eun Soo replied, her voice surprisingly calm. "I've done my research and based on the theory I was following, the gateway is related to the sunspot, but you are actually saying you are the one who opened the gate? Do you have some sort of time magic too?"

"Not magic, science." Taizu countered easily. He stood up seeing as she won't take a seat. "If you don't believe me, what other explanation is there for Choi Young's absence. You really think I could beat him in a fight?"

"You must have tricked him." Eun Soo stood resolute in her belief. Choi Young would never leave without her. And if for some reason his honor would force him to do such a thing, he would never leave without saying goodbye.

"Trick or not, he is gone." Taizu was beginning to get impatient. "And if you want to live, you should just stay here in this time. There are people out there who would do anything to fix history and save the future. At some point you were a part of the fix but your role is done. Anything else you will do in that time period will just ruin the future."

"Who are you?" What he was saying seemed so absurd, like a plot of some sci-fi movie.

"It doesn't really matter who I am." Taizu replied. "What is important is that you know that if you go back the future of Korea will be ruined. Or do you want to see your country go down in ashes? You might no longer be here to experience it, but what about your family? Your friends? Can you be so selfish to not even think of them?"

"Have you seen it?" Eun Soo was looking at him with hard eyes which Taizu had not expected. He had thought his statement would at least plant a seed of doubt in her heart.

"Seen what?"

"Korea in ashes." There was a challenge in her voice. When he didn't reply she continued. "If you have, then tell me what I did in the past that could create such a disaster and I shall endeavor to avoid it." When he still didn't answer Eun Soo stepped forward to where Taizu stood and looked at him unflinchingly in the eye. "You don't know, do you? All these predictions, you are just afraid of what I might do which is not part of your plans. But you don't really know the effects of my actions for sure. Well I am tired of worrying about what might happen, I will simply follow what my heart tells me to do. I have learned to do that in the year I was in Goryeo. I bet you did not expect that as well."

Taizu was looking at her as if he didn't know whether to be proud of her fearlessness or frustrated by it. "Leave now." Eun Soo commanded when he still remained silent, she pointed her index finger at the door for emphasis.

Taizu sighed and for a moment she thought there was a sadness in his eyes. "Seems like you cannot escape fate." His voice was almost a whisper as if he was talking to himself. And with that he left.

Eun Soo walked forward towards the couch and gave in to the weakness she felt on her knees. She clutched at the backrest to steady herself. Then she took a huge breath and rushed towards the door. The gate, she had to go there.

...

While unconscious, Choi Young's system fought off the effects of the tranquilizer. His lightning powers ran through his entire body and even without conscious thought it worked to negate the effects of the dose. And just like that Choi Young awoke an hour after he was shot which Jung Min had not expected.

He had remained in the car as instructed waiting for someone to pick Choi Young up, so he was surprised when his victim suddenly had his left hand on his throat, anger burning in his eyes. "Where is Eun Soo?" Choi Young squeezed his throat tighter as he asked this. Jung Min immediately tried to reach for the tranquilizer gun but he froze the moment he saw Choi Young's right hand. Lightning had started crackling in his hand and Jung Min became too afraid to move.

"She should be back in her apartment by now." Jung Min replied, stuttering in fear. "I was just told to knock you out and wait here, I don't know anything else."

"Who?" Choi Young asked, his anger unabated. "Who told you to do this? Tell me or I will kill you."

"I don't know!" Jung Min cried out. "I've only met him once and he never introduced himself. He must be Eun Soo's guardian of some sorts because he always seem to be watching out for her. He was the one who threatened me to break up with her when I had been planning on proposing. He was really scary. He had some sort of powers just like yours, I couldn't do anything but do what he said."

Choi Young released Jung Min in frustration then he drew back the lightning on his right hand and punched him on the neck to render him unconscious. He opened the car door and got out intending to walk back to Eun Soo's home. But as he looked around he realized he didn't know the way. The place looked familiar though and he noticed he was near the building where he had met Eun Soo for the first time.

 _If we get separated just go back to the gate and I'll come find you._

The words she said came back to him and he started running to the gate.

...

Eun Soo had taken a taxi to Bongeunsa Temple but when she got there the place was empty. And the gate like before was closed. It was really late and the night was cold. She felt like crying. She still did not believe he had gone through the gate, however if he wasn't here then something bad must have happened. She should have forced Taizu to tell her where Choi Young was. But what could she do, the man had powers, and she had nothing to bargain with.

She slumped on one corner of the Buddha statue. He would come, she believed he would. Taizu was right, he could not defeat Choi Young, and if he couldn't then there was no one in this world that could hold him. Thus he will come. She just needed to wait. She curled her legs and hugged herself to ward off the cold.

Choi Young stopped running as the statue came to view. It looked empty. His breathing was jagged from running and he forced himself to take easier breaths as he started walking towards the statue. He had not thought about not finding her here. His heart raced in apprehension at the thought that she might really be in danger. He was not well-versed with her world. He would not know how to find her, much less save her.

It was Eun Soo who saw him first. She was flooded with immense relief at the sight of him that she had to bite her lip to stop herself from crying as she didn't want to worry him. He worried so easily. She stood and took a few steps forward to meet him.

The instant Choi Young saw her he started to run once more then grabbed her in a huge hug the moment she was within reach. The relief he felt with having her back in his arms was so powerful he felt his whole body weaken by the force of it.

"I'm so glad you're okay." It was Eun Soo who first spoke. "I thought they took you, but then I thought that if it was you, then surely you would escape. You always do."

Choi Young didn't answer as he continued to cling to her as if he never wanted to let her go. After awhile it was him who disentangled her from his embrace. He held both her shoulders and looked her in the eye. The serious expression on his face made Eun Soo wonder as to his thoughts. "How do people in heaven get married?"

The question surprised Eun Soo and she stared at him speechless. When he inclined his head asking for an answer she stammered. "Uhm... we meet the family... take vows... then have a ceremony... and stuff."

"Let's do that." was Choi Young's immediate reply which surprised Eun Soo further. He then moved to go expecting her to follow. When she merely stood there staring at him, he took her wrist to pull her forward.

But Eun Soo stood her ground, which made Choi Young look back at her. "It's not that easy." Eun Soo finally got her wits back and started to explain. "We need to get registered, and have rings and clothes and..." Her voice trailed of as she looked at his expectant expression. It was futile to explain to him all these things.

But Choi Young seemed to have realized something. "I haven't seen your parents at your home." He looked at Eun Soo curiously. "Where do your parent's live? Don't you live with them?"

Eun Soo kept staring at him as if she still could not believe what was happening. "You want to meet my parents?"

Choi Young looked at her earnestly. "Since I will be taking you away from them forever, it would be polite to at least let them know you are safe."

As Eun Soo looked at him she couldn't stop the tears from falling. Immediately Choi Young became concerned. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"Nothing." Eun Soo sniffed as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Nothing's wrong. You've just made me really happy."

...

NEXT Chapter 6: He who Protects the Future – Choi Young and Eun Soo are getting married in heaven and Choi Young even gets to meet Eun Soo's parents. But darkness looms in the midst of their happiness. The future seem to be changing and Choi Young is given a chance to fix it by going back, without Eun Soo.

Author's notes: That premise might have to be changed. I've been researching about Korean weddings and its a huge pain in the arse. I don't know... I'll find a way.


	6. Chapter 6: He who Protects the Future P1

Chapter 6: He who Protects the Future Part I

Author's notes: Thanks everyone for the comments. This chapter took longer than expected to write and it became too long that I had to divide it into two parts. I'm sorry for that. Sorry because the more exciting part is mostly on the second part, but I'm almost done with that so the next update will not be too long.

 **To:alwaysfaith** Thanks a lot for your input. You caught me there. The problem about me is I'm plot-centric and bad with details, mostly the events that happen are there to cater to the plot and a lot of the little details gets left out. It's not awesome I know, and I'm glad you pointed that out. I might edit chapter 5 for more details with the amusement park as well as the dinner, but for now I would like to proceed with the story. As for a Goryeo wedding, I'm reserving that thought for the late chapters. But I really enjoyed reading what you said about the sofa thing, yeah that definitely would not make sense. But knowing Choi Young and Eun Soo's personality, sharing a bed will not get us much more than what we have already seen unless I go OOC and I'm trying to avoid that. This couple needs a push and shove first. Which I'm trying to do my best at. Aja! :D

 **To:faith2012** About ES and CY's characters, I'm glad you think so because I worked really hard to not go out of character. I love them so much I don't want them to suddenly feel like different people. And about them getting interrupted, sorry, I'm doing that on purpose... for a reason. But don't worry we will get to that.

 **To: Hikari Urania** I'm glad the plot looks visible, I love plotting. haha! This is a fanfic I made for ES and CY but more than that, it is a story.

 _ **Disclaimer: Events about Choi Young's life will coincide with the movie series and not with real history. Most of his achievements are based on history but the timeline is greatly off. Please note that this is done on purpose and is not a mistake.**_ ** _Also I am not Korean and I don't watch a lot of Korean movies so Korean culture and geography is not my forte, so if I make any mistakes, please point it out so I can correct them. Also the same disclaimer from previous chapters apply._**

...

Eun Soo opened one eye and slowly moved her head to the side to check if he was sleeping. His eyes were closed and the slow rise and fall of his chest assured her that he was.

It was already past midnight but the moonlight was shining brightly through her window. Eun Soo opened both eyes and slowly turned to lay on her right side so she could stare at his sleeping face. She was careful not to move her right hand which lay on the bed between them covered by Choi Young's left. He looked so young when he slept, devoid of the worries and concerns that rested on his shoulders whenever he was awake. He looked so peaceful and totally adorable.

Unbidden her left hand rose to touch his face. Catching herself, she clenched it into a fist instead and slowly placed it back down. Although asleep, Choi Young was always alert to his surroundings and she did not want to wake him.

She suppressed a sigh as she continued to watch him. She felt guilty for not telling him about Taizu. Once more she was keeping things from him and she knew he didn't like that. If she told him, his temper would flare for sure but it wasn't his temper that was stopping her. She knew his anger stemmed from fear for her safety and as a person whose response to trouble was a frontal assault, feeling helpless was not something he dealt with pretty well.

What really scared her was his over protectiveness. If he found out Taizu had threatened her life if she were to return to Goryeo she wasn't sure if he would still take her with him. Her safety had always mattered to him more than his desire to be with her.

She drew the hand holding hers into her chest and enclosed it with her other hand. Then she closed her eyes to find her determination. _I will tell him once we get back to Goryeo._ She decided. She can endure his wrath later. If Taizu wasn't lying about being the one who opened the gate then she was sure they would be able to go back soon. They needed Choi Young back in Goryeo, so all she needed to do was to make sure not to get separated from him.

She opened her eyes to find him watching her which startled her. "You're... I... I thought you were asleep."

"I was." was Choi Young's amused reply. He had moved to his side as well and thus they were facing each other. "But apparently you are not."

His eyes fell into the hand she was clutching and upon realizing where the hand had landed she immediately brought it back down to the bed. Color stained her cheeks and she began nibbling her bottom lip in mortification, unable to meet his eyes.

They had slept in a single bed together countless times but that was all they did. He would hold her hand and they would sleep. Choi Young was always a perfect gentleman that there were times she wondered if he found her desirable at all. But just having him beside her gave her so much comfort she never really dwelt on it.

"Imja." His voice sounded hoarse that her eyes immediately flew to his to check if he was in pain. But she found his eyes had focused on her lips. "Stop doing that."

Eun Soo's eyes widened and she immediately stopped biting her lip and clamped it shut. Her reaction elicited a chuckle from Choi Young which made Eun Soo narrow her eyes at him. She punched at his right shoulder. "Stop teasing me."

Choi Young raised his brows at that. "You think I'm not being serious?" In fact Choi Young had been very serious. He had no qualms about kissing her and the only thing stopping him was the fact that they were both lying on her bed, and he was fully conscious about them being alone not just in her room but as well as in the entire house. If he kissed her now he wasn't sure if he had enough self control to stop with just kisses. But he couldn't resist challenging her. "Why don't you try it again and let's see how serious I am."

Eun Soo frowned as she pulled her hand away from his and turned her back on him. She winced as pain registered on the left side of her waist but she refused to face him.

Choi Young smiled wryly. Then he moved to lie on his chest as he pulled on Eun Soo's right shoulder so she lay on her back. "Be careful of your wound." he reprimanded. Eun Soo looked at him still frowning, noticing that his face was now hovering over hers.

Choi Young could not help smiling at her. She looked so captivating, whether she was smiling, or angry at him like she was now, or even when she was lost in thought and messing with her hair. Shifting his weight into his left arm, he reached out with his right hand to comb through her hair.

Her breath caught at the tenderness she saw in his eyes. Her frown disappeared and she raised her left hand to caress the hair that had fallen over his right eye. When she withdrew her hand he removed the hand on her hair to capture hers and laced his fingers with hers. Then in one swift motion he moved to lie on his back drawing her with him.

She stared at him in wide-eyed surprise. A third of her body was now covering his with her red tresses falling all over his chest. With his other hand, he pressed the right side of her head onto his chest. "Now go to sleep." He commanded. _Before I start thinking about more dangerous things than your sweet lips and soft hair._ He continued in his head.

With her ear pressed to his chest, Eun Soo could hear the beating of his heart. It was definitely beating faster than normal. A small smile covered her lips as she listened to the rhythm of his heart. How was one supposed to sleep with your heart beating that fast? But it wasn't long before the sound lulled her to sleep.

Choi Young however was still awake trying to think of other things besides the feel of the woman in his arms. Jung Min had said something about working for a man who was Eun Soo's guardian. He also said the man had powers. But why would such a person want to get rid of him? Yet he was drugged instead of killed which meant they wanted to keep him alive. But what was his aim? It didn't seem like the person intended Eun Soo any harm though which relieved him somewhat. The more pressing problem was getting the gate to open.

No. Choi Young thought as he closed his eyes. _I'm not going to think about that._ For some reason Eun Soo seemed to be really good at reading his feelings and whenever he worried about something she would always be concerned for him. The gate will soon open and then they would go back to Goryeo together.

For now, this was the order in which he will do things, first he was going to marry Eun Soo and do everything in his power to make her happy. And while he was at it, he would enjoy the time spent with her without worrying about the palace. Then he will find this person who had ordered him to be taken, since he had powers that Jung Min did not understand then he must be somewhat related to his world. After which, he was going to work with Eun Soo to find a faster way to get back to his King, that is if the gate has not opened by then. With that in mind he fell asleep.

...

"We need to make up a story about where you are from and what you do as well as other stuff about you." Eun Soo was telling Choi Young. They were both having breakfast which Eun Soo had prepared. She wasn't much of a cook but she had lived long enough by herself to actually make something palatable. They were sitting opposite each other on her small kitchen table discussing about meeting her parents whilst eating.

"I know you find lying troublesome, but in this case you just can't tell my parents the truth." Eun Soo continued. "I mean, I don't think they will believe you if you tell them you are really the great general Choi Young from the Goryeo period and you have come to the future to marry their daughter. They'll think you're crazy."

Choi Young thought about what Eun Soo was saying. He had never thought about his merits as a husband. Choi Young was born of a noble aristocratic family. His grandfather had been the teacher of the past King and Choi Young had been serving his King and country at the age of seventeen. At twenty-two he was the captain of the Wu Dal Chi and at twenty-nine he had been given a position as a general. He then had served as the Grand General of the King's army in many battles, taking back various towns that had been taken by the Yuan.

However, Eun Soo was telling him that he could not tell her parents that he was a warrior. But if he wasn't, then what was he?

"I guess we can stick as close to the truth as we can." Eun Soo was speaking between mouthfuls. "Maybe we can tell them you are a soldier of the ROK Armed Forces." Eun Soo suddenly beamed brightly as the idea came to mind. "My father has never gone to war because of his weak heart condition so he would not know a thing about the army. That would be perfect!"

"You have wars?" Choi Young asked in confusion. Although he had recently learned that her world actually had more powerful weapons than a stick it was still hard to believe that this place where everyone seem to simply enjoy life could actually be ravaged by wars.

Eun Soo actually laughed at his surprise. "War is something our world can never escape from no matter what era it is." She was still about to say something more when her phone rang. Choi Young's gaze followed her as she went to the living room to answer the call.

It really amazed Choi Young how people in her world can communicate long distances simply by the use of one small object. It eliminated the need of carrier pigeons and made communicating really fast and easy. If they had something like that on earth, rallying troops as well as communicating with spies could be done with no effort at all. But aside from that, it seemed that this small tool which everyone in heaven seemed to carry, can also tell the time, play music and even capture the details of one's surroundings, like an instant painting.

His line of thought reminded him of Gi Chul. Had that person been able to enter heaven he would have brought back tons of that stuff along with him back to the ground. But although Choi Young could see the advantages of it, in the hands of an enemy it could be very dangerous.

Meanwhile in the living room one of Eun Soo's fears just came to pass. Her mother was on the phone and her voice was bordering on hysterical. As they lived far from the city, Eun Soo had hoped her parents had not heard about her kidnapping. They didn't usually watch television and Eun Soo wasn't even sure the television in their house still worked. But it seemed a neighbor had asked about her welfare and that was how they found out.

At first Eun Soo had planned to just send them a letter before she left, telling them not to worry about her and that she was safe. She had not wanted to meet them because then leaving them behind would become so much harder. However, she could not say no to Choi Young wanting to meet them. That and she really wanted her parents to meet this person who had captured her heart.

"I'm fine eomma." Eun Soo was trying to reassure her mother. She was glad that her being shot had not been broadcasted. Her mother was worried enough with just the kidnapping. "It was just a few minutes and then he just let me go without harming me."

"Your father and I are going there to see you." Her mother insisted, wanting to see for themselves that their only daughter was really safe.

"Eomma, we were just on our way to come see you, so you don't have to do that." Eun Soo replied patiently.

"We?" Her mother asked in surprise.

"Yes." This was as much better time than any to prepare her parents that she was bringing home a man. Maybe it will take their minds off from worrying about her. "I am bringing a man over, and you better treat him well because I am serious about him. If you scare him away, I will cry a river." She continued in a pouty voice that she often used with her parents to get what she wanted.

There was silence on the other line. Song Seo Yun could not believe what she was hearing. They had met men who Eun Soo had dated before but mostly they met the person in restaurants on grand hotels. Not once had Eun Soo actually brought someone into their house. Her daughter had always dated professional men who were used to the city life. Eun Soo was a city girl herself, life in the farm had never suited her. She looked back at her husband who was watching her with a worried expression. But unlike her, he was calm and although she knew he was curious about what their daughter had said, he patiently waited for her to tell him without asking her anything.

"Eomma?" Her daughter's voice brought her back, away from her thoughts.

"When are you coming?" she asked.

"We are coming over today." Eun Soo answered. "I was just going to call you to let you know, but you called first."

The fact that Eun Soo hadn't given them notice weeks ago meant it was a spur of the moment decision and Seo Yun didn't know what to think about that. She had talked to her daughter on the phone every week and the last time was about five days ago. She never even mentioned dating someone, in fact she had complained about how hard it was to meet someone who could at least meet 10% of what she looked for in a man.

"You are not pregnant are you?" She couldn't stop herself from asking which made her husband look at her in aghast.

"Eomma!" Eun Soo exclaimed which made her hold the phone away from her ears. "If you ever say something like that in front of him..." Her voice trailed off as a male voice could be heard over the phone.

"Imja, is something wrong?"

Seo Yun pressed the phone closer to her ear. Wasn't Eun Soo in her apartment? Was her daughter already living with this man? She almost swooned at the thought. She knew her daughter was thirty-three and was way past the age where most Korean women married. But to actually live with a man outside of marriage, no, she had raised her daughter better than that.

"Eun Soo-yah, you have a lot of explaining to do." She managed to say sternly. "So you better start packing and be here in a few hours."

"Ok, I'll talk to you later." And then the line was dead. Eun Soo sounded distracted and not even a bit contrite which made her mother glare at the phone. Then she looked at her husband who was still looking at her worriedly.

"She's bringing home a man." she said half in anger and half in disbelief. "Someone she's probably just met because I've never heard of her dating anyone recently."

"She's fine then?" Yoo Ho Jun was first and foremost worried about his daughter's wellbeing rather than some man she was dating.

Seo Yun waved away her husband's concern as if there was never a need to worry, forgetting that she had been fretting about their daughter's welfare just a few minutes ago. "She sounds as energetic as ever and they are coming over today."

Ho Jun frowned. "You said she never mentioned him until today?"

"That's right." His wife confirmed sharply. "And he is already staying with her."

Ho Jun narrowed his eyes. "Did she say that?"

"No, but he was obviously there. I could hear him speaking. And it's early in the morning." She spoke as if she had everything figured out.

"Since they have plans to come over, he could have just dropped by early to pick her up." Ho Jin suggested. "Anyway, your daughter is old enough to make her own decisions please don't do anything to embarass her."

Seo Yun faced her husband with wide eyes. "Me? I'm merely concerned for our child. How could you say such things. She's never brought a man home before. You remember the first time she was ever in love with someone? She followed him around like a lovesick puppy and posted a picture of him in her bedroom wall. What if she'd gone crazy over this person and he doesn't feel the same for her. It could scar her for life. Or worse!" She exclaimed, wringing her arms dramatically as if she had been insulted beyond repair by his comment.

Ho Jun maintained an impassive expression, too used to his wife's theatrics. "He is willing to travel over here to meet us. Why don't we meet him first before we judge anything. Besides if our daughter cares about him as much as you suspect then doesn't that mean we need to give him some credit. That incident you mentioned was too long ago when she was but a teenager. If you haven't noticed, our daughter has never really opened her heart to a serious relationship, not even with that doctor collegue of hers who she's dated for more than three years. When he left her for another woman she didn't even shed a tear, and I don't think that's normal."

Seo Yun looked contrite. "I just don't want her to end up like Joon Ha."

Ho Jun's expression hardened at the mention of his brother. Then his expression eased as he took his wife's hand in his. "That's not going to happen. Our daughter is strong. She has your strength."

...

Eun Soo paid the fare for the cab while Choi Young grabbed the designer duffel bag that contained both their clothes and a small paper bag that held something Eun Soo bought along the way. They needed to walk a small trail before reaching her parents house. Her parents lived in a small village in Gurye and they had to take a train to the Seoul Nambu bus terminal from the Gangnam District, then a three hour bus ride before taking the cab.

After experiencing the rides in the amusement park Choi Young took the train ride in stride. Eun Soo had briefly entertained the idea of taking the plane instead but she felt that it would be too cruel. Although Choi Young had proven to be too resilient and she had been severely tempted to check his limits.

She couldn't help snickering at the thought which made Choi Young look at her curiously. Looking at him made her laugh out loud. At the moment he was wearing pants and a shirt which made him look like any other person from the 21st century but it wasn't hard to imagine him in his Wu Dal Chi armor and she was really curious now at how he would react to riding a plane.

Looking at her laughing face Choi Young wondered if she had placed something untoward on his hair once again. But when she spoke he instead wondered at her sense of humor. "I was just thinking that we should take what you call a 'flying carriage back home to Seoul, it would be fun."

Choi Young shook his head in amazement. Until now he still found her puzzling, to say the least. The things that made her laugh and cry... he didn't think he would ever figure her out.

Eun Soo was walking ahead still laughing when the house came to view. Suddenly she felt really nostalgic. It was just a few hours to travel home but she hadn't really been back for a long while. The slow pace of the village had never really been her style. The excitement of a career made her feel more alive. Then she had been too busy with her work to even think about going home. Especially since she bought her new apartment, she had to work twice as hard as she was paying for that every month, and then she had to put a lot of her funds into her savings to start her own practice.

But now all of that didn't matter and she had expected to feel a sense of regret on leaving behind the things she had worked so hard for. But she felt nothing of the sort. Instead she felt relief. As if she had been chained all her life and now she was finally free. And suddenly the farm house that she had been avoiding seemed to be the only part of her life that she would miss. This house and the people that lived in it.

Choi Young saw her stop in front of an old house, just staring at the place. She looked as if she was memorizing every corner of it. There might be a lot of things he could not understand about Eun Soo but there was no denying the pull in his heart as he watched her standing there. She had missed this place.

He went to stand beside her and with his free hand he took hold of her right hand and squeezed it. This made her look up at him with a smile. He gave her a small smile back. And with that Eun Soo stepped forward and knocked at the door.

The door slid open as soon as her knuckle collided with the wooden frame as if her mother had been standing behind the door just waiting for her to knock. Eun Soo released Choi Young's hand to fling herself into her mother's arms.

Her mother looked bewildered at her reaction. Although Eun Soo rarely came home, they had been travelling to Seoul quite a lot, hence it wasn't as if they haven't seen each other for a long time. But the way Eun Soo clung to her, it was as if they haven't seen each other in years.

After a few seconds Eun Soo stepped back smiling brightly. "Eomma, this is Choi Young." she said gesturing at him with one arm. "And this is my lovely eomeoni." she continued now gesturing with both arms at her mother.

Choi Young bent forward at the waist to give a polite greeting. "Pleased to meet you."

Seo Yun observed the young man critically. He seemed to be really well mannered and she had seen them both standing outside the house smiling at each others eyes. Although the curtain had hampered her view so she had not been able to see their expressions clearly.

Just then Eun Soo saw her father at the living room and she hastened to remove her shoes almost stumbling in the process. Instinctively, Choi Young steadied her in which he was rewarded with a sheepish smile before she rushed inside to hug her father. Choi Young's eyes followed her, smiling slightly at her exuberance. She had so much energy and life that just watching her was like bathing under the sun.

"Abeoji!" Eun Soo hugged her father tightly. "You look well. I guess eomma has been feeding you right."

Seo Yun however was still studying the man Eun Soo had brought home and her breath caught at her throat at the way he was looking at her daughter. She knew that look. She had seen it before. "Why don't you come in." She made room for him to enter. "Forgive my daughter's manners, she's lived alone for so long it seems she has forgotten everything we taught her."

Eun Soo freed herself from her father's embrace to glare at her mother. "Eomma, I heard that." But she went to Choi Young, took the duffel bag he was holding and placed it on the floor before taking his other hand in hers, walking him forward to meet her father before releasing it. "Abeoji, this is Choi Young."

Choi Young gave another low bow, saying the same greeting. But before he even finished bowing Eun Soo grabbed the paper bag he was holding and gave it to her father. "There, we bought that for you and eomma. It's your favorite wine but don't drink too much of it at one time."

The house was old fashioned and the living room had a huge mat with a large low table, although there was actually a couch on two sides of the room, pressed to the wall.

Seo Yun took the paper bag from her husband to store away in the kitchen. Unlike Eun Soo's apartment, the kitchen looked to be in a separate room and was completely closed off. The living room also served as the dining room thus the low table was empty of furnishings.

They all sat on the mat facing the table, with Eun Soo and Choi Young on the other side and her parents opposite them.

"So what's this about you being kidnapped and not telling us about it." Ho Jun voiced out the topic that concerned him the most.

"It was nothing serious, really." Eun Soo responded, downplaying the event. "The person mistook me for a famous doctor and when he found out he was mistaken, he simply let me go."

Ho Jun studied his daughter's expression to see if she was lying. But Eun Soo was really good at hiding her feelings so despite the sincere look on her face Ho Jun still had his doubts. "They said the person who took you actually injured the head of security and had even attacked the police."

Eun Soo couldn't resist looking at Choi Young to see his reaction. He looked as if he wanted to apologize but she had warned him to never tell her parents that it was his doing as no amount of apology will ever make them understand.

Feeling her gaze on him, Choi Young turned to meet Eun Soo's eyes. The concern he saw there was almost his undoing. He could just imagine, had they been talking about another person taking Eun Soo away, he would probably never let her out of his sight until that person was dead. But the knowledge that it was him that had placed her in such danger crushed his heart more. And the fact that he could not even apologize for it made it all the more heavier. But all this heaviness in his heart just made her worry about him and he didn't want that. So he decided he would make up for all of it for the rest of his life.

The fierce protectiveness in Choi Young's eyes made Seo Yun turn away as a pain that had long ago been forgotten seared her heart. She had been watching the both of them like a hawk and at that moment she concluded that she had been wrong. There was less to worry about her daughter being in a one-sided love. She was more worried about that young man's heart.

"No one died and I'm fine." Eun Soo spoke with her eyes still on Choi Young's. Then she turned to look at her father. "Besides we are not here to talk about my kidnapping."

Ho Jun sighed knowing he would not get anymore information from her daughter than what she was willing to let them know. So instead he faced Choi Young. "So young man, where are you from?"

Choi Young answered all of the questions as honestly as he could without revealing the fact that he was not from this world. He told them his father was a teacher and that his mother had died when he was young. His father also died a few years later and since then he had been serving the army. Eun Soo provided most of the more complicated information, like how they met and when. She was really good at thinking quickly and coming out with a plausible lie which surprised Choi Young at how good she was at lying.

Then it was almost dinner time and Seo Yun asked Eun Soo to help in the kitchen. Choi Young stood the moment Seo Yeon had risen, and gave a polite bow. Eun Soo stood to follow her mother but was quite reluctant to leave Choi Young alone. The anxious look in her eyes made him want to cup her cheek in reassurance but he stopped himself knowing her parents were watching and gave her a small smile instead. He watched her disappear into the kitchen before sitting back down.

The moment Eun Soo entered the kitchen her mother enclosed her in a hug as she cried. Eun Soo wrapped her arms around her mother in shock, patting her on the back, not knowing what had caused such a break down. _Was she still worried about the kidnapping?_

"Don't ever let him go, Eun Soo-ya." Her mother said softly much to Eun Soo's surprise. "Whatever you do, don't let him go."

"Eomma what's wrong?" Eun Soo asked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Seo Yun released herself from her daughter's embrace to look her in the eye. "If you let him go, you will regret it for the rest of your life. So promise me you will hold on to him no matter what happens."

Although still confused, Eun Soo nodded. It was an easy promise to make as she never had any plans to give up on Choi Young. Not for anything. She knew it was selfish of her to think this way but she accepted that as well. If she were to be punished for her selfishness, she would take whatever punishment that came her way as long as she could be with him.

Seo Yun wiped her tears away and began pulling out the vegetables they needed to cook for dinner without saying another word. All this time she had worried that her daughter would be like her father, and that she would be punished for her lack of trust through her daughter. But now she understood, Ho Jun was right. Her daughter was a lot like her. She just hoped she wouldn't make the same mistakes she did.

In the living room Ho Jun was looking at Choi Young seriously and asked the question he didn't want to ask in front of his daughter. "Let's speak plainly young man. What are your intentions towards my daughter."

"I plan to marry her and protect her for the rest of my life." Choi Young answered without hesitation.

Although Ho Jun was a bit taken aback by his forwardness he didn't dislike his answer at all. The person seemed to genuinely care for his daughter and he didn't mince with words. He liked that.

"So you have met my daughter only a year ago, and you have merely seen her a couple of times since then, but you know you want to spend the rest of your life with her?" Ho Jun didn't hold back the doubt in his voice.

"Yes." Was Choi Young's forthright answer. Ho Jun waited for the young man to say more and when he didn't he gave out a small laugh. He had expected to get avowals of love and destiny, after all, that was something the young people of this time was getting addicted to. But that Choi Young had not proclaimed such actually pleased him.

The man was obviously smitten by his daughter. He would have to be blind not to see that. However, despite his daughter's many faults Eun Soo had always been an attractive woman and she had her fair share of smitten men. The fact that Choi Young did not declare the depths of his love so easily meant he was not the type to fall in love so quickly and that was a good sign.

"Then can you promise me that you will never hurt my daughter?" Most parents would be asking their potential son-in-laws about their future plans and how they would provide for their daughter, but Ho Jun was not that kind of man. He had never approved of Eun Soo's money grubbing attitude as well as her superfluous ambitions. He was content to leave his daughter to someone who would care for her.

But the question actually staggered Choi Young to speechlessness. As the person who kidnapped their daughter and forced her to stay in a foreign land filled with danger, how could he dare make such a promise? He had hurt her deeply when he had decided to send her back to her world after finding out that her antidote was gone. Many times she had cried because of him. The problem was, he knew he was going to do anything to protect her even if it meant hurting her. When it came to choosing between her heart and her life, he would always choose to save her. Her heart would mend in time, but he could not bring back the dead.

Ho Jun raised one brow seeing as it took Choi Young a long time to answer. Although he was pleased that the man did not give out his promise so easily, this also worried him a bit.

Ho Jun sighed, he had never thought to share this insight about his daughter with anyone, but he decided this man needed to know. "I'm sure you have noticed this, my daughter has a strong heart, she is a survivor like her mother." Ho Jun said this with pride but then he chose his next words carefully. "However, that strength is simply a wall she has built around her. You see, when she was eight, we had a pet dog that Eun Soo loved so much. When the dog died she buried him herself but she would not accept any ideas of another pet, and this never changed until adulthood. It wasn't because she could not risk another loss, Eun Soo is not someone who is scared of loosing. It's just that to her the pet was special and could never be replaced." He looked at Choi Young straight in the eyes as he said this.

"In that aspect she is a lot like my brother. He was someone who could not do anything halfheartedly. When he wanted something, he would devote his heart, his soul, and his entire life to it. What he didn't have was Eun Soo's pride, and that pride has protected her for a long time." His face showed his concern at his next words. "But with you, I do not see her walls. And this scares me."

Choi Young was looking down at the table taking in all that Ho Jun had said. This insight on Eun Soo didn't really change much of anything for Choi Young. He already knew Eun Soo had a heart capable of caring so deeply that the things she was willing to do sometimes both astonished and exasperated him. But he also knew that she held another strength that came from caring. The same strength that made him survive all those years of waiting for her. It was faith.

Yet Eun Soo's father still needed his answer and he deserved a truthful one. "I can't promise I will never hurt her." The statement made Ho Jun look at him in surprise but he continued. "But I can say this with all honesty, every time she hurts, it pains me a hundred times more. And when she bleeds, I am in agony. When she cries, my heart bleeds." Then he looked up to Ho Jun with a small smile. "To me, she is the air and the sun."

Coming from anyone else Ho Jun would have scoffed at such a declaration. He was not really a romantic at heart, it seemed his brother had taken all the romantic bones in the family. But for some reason, coming from this person, he believed it. After all he could have easily promised never to hurt her instead.

With that his decision was made and he took something from his pocket and pushed it towards Choi Young. "That belonged to my brother. He got it for the woman he was going to marry."

Although Choi Young wasn't well versed with the customs of this world, Eun Soo had briefed him on some of the details and looking at the size of the box her father was offering, it could only contain one thing. The fact that the ring was with Eun Soo's father and not with his brother's intended wife could only mean the wedding never took place. "What happened to them?"

"She married someone else and he..." The story was just too painful for Ho Jun to retell so instead he pushed the box once more to Choi Young. "I'm sure he would have wanted you to have it. To see Eun Soo wear this ring would have made him happy."

Choi Young accepted the box, respecting the older man's feelings. "Thank you." Then he made an earnest request that made Eun Soo's father smile. "Can you tell me more about Eun Soo as a child. I would like to hear more about her."

Ho Jun was still telling Choi Young about some of Eun Soo's escapades as a child when dinner became ready. Eun Soo who heard them talking as she came back complained about it to her father but in truth she had been really happy to see them conversing in such a light-hearted manner. During dinner, her parents talked more about Eun Soo to her chagrin, but she delighted at Choi Young joining in the conversation that she let it go. He acted a lot like when he was with the Su Li Bang and he even teased her when her mother spoke about her cooking abilities, or her lack thereof.

They continued conversing way after dinner time until Seo Yun started yawning and Ho Jun realized the couple must be tired as well as they have just been on a long trip. He asked Eun Soo to show Choi Young to his room. Eun Soo had already placed the duffel bag into the room while they were still in conversation so she merely asked Choi Young to follow her.

Although the house was small, it still had three bedrooms. And Eun Soo brought Choi Young to the one she had been using as a library when she had been in school. The room had been her uncle's bedroom, but according to her father, her uncle never used the room anyway as he was always cooped up in his research and slept with his books.

Eun Soo opened the door and gestured for Choi Young to go in. Choi Young went inside and immediately noticed the shelves of books. There were about three tall shelves full of them. Eun Soo stayed at the door entrance. "I'm sorry about the books." Eun Soo said apologetically looking at the shelves. "I don't know where else to put them." Then she gestured towards a small closet opposite the bed. "But you can use that closet over there, I placed the bag with your clothes inside, some of my clothes are still there but I'll pick them up lat..." Her voice trailed off as she faced him. He was looking at her curiously as if wondering about something.

Eun Soo narrowed her eyes at him. "What?"

"Come here." He gestured with his hand. Although confused, Eun Soo closed the door and moved to stand in front of him. To her surprise Choi Young stepped forward to close the gap between them and took her in his arms in a light embrace. He closed his eyes to savor the feel of her in his arms. "You have a wonderful family." Choi Young said a few seconds later.

She looked up at him with a smile, her arms still encircling his waist. "You are my family now. It seems I am so lucky to have another wonderful person in my family."

Choi Young's eyes misted at her words and he clutched her back into his embrace. "How did the heavens ever allow me meet you?"

Eun Soo smiled into his chest. "I guess there is no sneaking into your room today." She said jokingly to lighten the mood.

"Your parents will kill me." Choi Young answered seriously.

"They will probably do that in a few minutes if I don't get out of here soon."

Choi Young released her with a chuckle. "Don't they know I'm good with a sword?"

"Ha! They probably won't care." Eun Soo quipped. "Eomma's tongue can be sharper than a sword you know."

Choi Young actually threw back his head to laugh. "I get who you take after."

Eun Soo tried to punch him on the chest but he caught her wrist. The laughter was gone in his eyes. "Imja."

Eun Soo looked at him with concern but he only motioned his head towards the door. "You need to move now while I can still let you go."

Eun Soo took a hesitating step back. She should go but her legs felt like wooden blocks. Somehow the feeling felt familiar. Then she remembered the the first time Choi Young had tried to uphold his promise. He had tried to send her back through the gate at that time. Yes she had her doubts about going through some warp hole but it hadn't been that which made her legs so wooden. Had her heart already known what she had refused to acknowledge for a long time? That she belonged with him.

But this time it would not be a parting, and she felt like laughing at herself for being so clingy. "I'll see you in the morning." She said as she turned to go. But he didn't release her wrist, instead, to her surprise he drew her towards him and held her from the back. His right hand that still held her right wrist snaked around her waist bringing her arm along with it, while his left arm held her across her chest, holding her securely in his embrace. This would be the first time they would be sleeping apart since she had come back to him. He rested his right cheek on the side of her head and held her tighter as if he could not bear to let her go.

They stayed like that for a few minutes until Eun Soo reluctantly pried his arms away to face him. "I'll see you in the morning." she repeated. If it were up to her, she'd have stayed in his arms 'til morning, but she didn't want her parents knocking at the door. When Choi Young didn't say anything she stood on the tip her toes and planted a soft quick kiss on his lips. Then she gave him a sweet smile. "Goodnight."

She turned to look back at him before she exited the door. The eyes that looked back at her made it so hard for her to move, but she forced herself to go. Choi Young watched the door close behind her.

...

"In a week?!" Seo Yun exclaimed in disbelief. "You cannot prepare for a wedding in a week. Besides there wont be any wedding halls available for bookings in such short notice."

"I'm not going back to Seoul for a wedding eomma." Eun Soo explained. "We plan to just have a small wedding in the village."

Seo Yun didn't really dislike the idea of that but where did the girl with all the fancy wedding dreams go? Eun Soo had always loved pretty things and as a teenager she would talk about having a grand wedding in a luxurious place. As she grew older she had stopped talking about weddings but her love for luxury had not diminished. This person talking about a small village wedding seemed like a total stranger to her.

"I'm not going for traditional, but we don't need anything extravagant." Eun Soo had thought the wedding plans through, and she definitely didn't want anything that would just be similar to a wedding in Goryeo. Since they were getting married in 'heaven' then they might as well have something Choi Young would never see back on 'earth'. But at the same time, they don't know when the gate would open. Taizu could show up at anytime, she wasn't even sure they had a week.

They were talking about the wedding plans with her parents sitting on a long couch in the living room and Eun Soo and Choi Young sitting on the other much smaller one. Eun Soo had told her parents that Choi Young's only living relative was an aunt who was overseas and that she was out of contact at the moment. In most families such would have been met with disapproval but Eun Soo's parents seemed to have adopted him instead, sometimes even making decisions more for his convenience rather than hers.

Finally after having lunch Eun Soo and Choi Young was able to have some time alone as they went out for a walk. It was early autumn in Korea and the cornelian cherry flowers were still in full bloom. Although a lot of the other villages were well known for its abundance, their village didn't have much of the trees as it had vast farm lands of wheat and rice instead.

They had been walking in silence both lost in thought when suddenly Eun Soo grabbed Choi Young's wrist. "I just remembered there is something I want to show you." She said whilst pulling him to the direction of a large greenhouse just up ahead.

The greenhouse was owned by neighboring farm owners including her parents. It was protected by a combination lock and when she tried the old combination it still worked.

Choi Young looked at the various plants inside in awe. The place would put the Palace herb garden to shame and it was indoors. "We do this so we could grow seedlings all year round." Eun Soo explained. "Our village main source of income is farming so this is very important to us."

Then she led him farther to the back. "Here my parents plant herbs for making soaps and such. My father is into organic stuff thus we would always make our own soaps and shampoos. Until now, he still goes to Gangnam with eomma to provide me with homemade toiletries."

"So this is where you learned how to make those stuff you were always passing around in Goryeo." Choi Young said. "I've always wondered how a doctor who could not even make her own medicine was so knowledgeable about making soaps."

Eun Soo smiled at him brightly. "I should show you a pharmacy, that is where people buy medicine. We have pharmaceutical companies who manufacture medicine for us. They are monitored by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to make sure the medicine is reliable. So not just anyone can make medicine."

Choi Young nodded in understanding. He had learned to quickly filter words he could not understand and just interpret her whole sentences to its closest possible meaning. It actually made sense to him that there would be officials that would regulate the production of medicine to test its safety first. In her world where they seem to have a cure for everything, he can see where that would be important.

"Oh there is something else I want to show you." Eun Soo was now leading him out of the greenhouse into a small shack near it. Eun Soo got a key hidden underneath a flowerpot and held it up in triumphant glee, happy that it was still there. But she was greatly surprised when she opened the door.

She had expected the place to be dusty but it was as clean as when she had left it. Although she had visited the farm a few times in the past few years, she really had not the time to visit this place. She touched the desk where she would usually study for hours just to get into a good college. The desk was squeaky clean.

"This place was my uncle's study." She motioned to the stacks of diaries in the table. "He was a genius they said. He passed away when I was three, I cannot even remember what he looks like."

"Your uncle, he was your father's brother?" Choi Young asked remembering the conversation he had with her father.

"Yes." Eun Soo answered. "I used to come here to study. I hated studying but I knew I had to do it if I wanted to get into a good school to become a doctor. And this place calmed me somehow. It was like, when I come here, the doubts of what I wanted for the future seemed to disappear and it gave me the determination to work hard for what I wanted."

The place was just a small room filled with self bound books. It didn't have much furnishings except for a desk with a single chair, and a sofa bed on the other corner.

"I tried reading one of his diaries but I could not understand a single thing of what he wrote." Eun Soo said with a laugh. "He had so many formulas I have never seen in textbooks. I was thinking he must have wanted to create something awesome."

"People in heaven seem to love creating new things." Choi Young observed.

Eun Soo laughed at that. "We are not any different from the people of Goryeo, we just have more means to do so." Then she faced him with a serious expression. "I know I have told you about this before, which you seem to ignore all the time. But this is not really heaven. You see, this place is the same place you live in except that time has just moved forward and people have learned to do more things."

Choi Young merely stared at her with a blank expression and she sighed. Then an idea came to her. "I know! I'm not sure if you have ever gone to this place but lets go see Hwaeomsa temple. I know it was constructed way back when Goryeo was still named Silla and it wasn't burned down until the Japanese invasion towards the end of the 16th century so it should still be standing during your time. It has been rebuilt to look as closely as the old one during the Joseon period so you might recognize it."

Hwaeomsa wasn't exactly a walking distance to where they were so they had to take a short ride on a bus to get there. Eun Soo had visited the temple a lot of times and was sure she wouldn't have any trouble finding the place but she stopped short in her tracks when the area stopped looking familiar. She was so sure the place they were standing on should be the entrance to the temple but instead what she saw was a place filled with modern houses.

She stopped a passersby to ask about the temple but the woman merely gave her an odd look. The third person she asked seemed to be more knowledgeable about history and looked at her if she had gone crazy. "Hwaeomsa temple was burned down during the Japanese invasion hundreds of years ago."

Eun Soo started to tremble at the implications of what he was saying. That meant the place had never been rebuilt. But she was so sure it had existed before. She had learned about it in history and had seen the place like a dozen times during her childhood.

Eun Soo had gotten pale and Choi Young grabbed her shoulders in concern. "Imja, what is wrong?"

"The temple is gone." Eun Soo looked at him in fear. "It was supposed to be here but now its gone. I think we have changed the future."

-End of Part I-

...

Author's notes: I'll try to update with Part II by the end of the week as this part wasn't really meant as a stand alone chapter.


	7. Chapter 6: He who Protects the Future P2

Chapter 6.5: He who Protects the Future Part II

Author's Notes: Really sorry about the division, but before I knew it I already had thirteen thousand words and I was not even done yet, thus I decided to post the first nine thousand as part 1.

 **To:alwaysfaith** That is actually a wonderful suggestion, it would give the scene a deeper sense of emotion. I've edited chapter 6 to incorporate some of your ideas, I hope you don't mind.

 **To:faith2012** I'm so glad you like it, I had so many doubts about Part 1 that I really didn't want to put it up by itself as it didn't contain much that impacts the couple. But I really wanted to explore more about Eun Soo as the original series hardly scratched the surface of her character. I still have hopes that Song Ji Na will write volume 3 of Faith so we can get more insight to Eun Soo's character. As I said previously, I really love Eun Soo.

 _ **Disclaimer: A Korean wedding can be a very complicated thing. From gift giving to ceremonial rituals, I've done extensive research and watched countless of videos, the more I know, the more dizzy I become. I'm sorry, but I just can't do it. Especially since CY doesn't have any family present, so it would be kinda sad to follow any tradition as a Korean wedding is a union of two families and not just two people. So what I have is a more simplified modern version instead (a lot of modern Koreans also do it this way), otherwise you guys will have to wait a few more months for this chapter to be done. So please understand. Also the same disclaimer from previous chapters apply.**_

 _edits: Changed the way Eun Soo calls her father from 'appa' to 'abeoji' to stay true with the tv series version, also added a back hug and etc in the library scene courtesy of alwaysfaith._

...

"The temple is gone." Eun Soo looked at Choi Young in fear. "It was supposed to be here but now its gone. I think we have changed the future."

Choi Young tightened his hold on her shoulders as she seemed to be lost in her fears. "Imja, this change you are talking about, what harm does it do?"

The question made Eun Soo hold her fears at bay as she began to think. Well, they lost a valuable cultural heritage, but aside from that it didn't really affect anything much. What she was most concerned about were its implications to Choi Young's future.

"Let's go back home." Eun Soo said as she started walking back. "I need to check the history books for more information." Choi Young followed.

As soon as they got back, Eun Soo rushed to Choi Young's room to look for her history books. Most of the books in the shelves were about medicine but she knew she kept her old textbooks as well so it must be there somewhere.

Choi Young looked at the books with her although he didn't really know what it was she was looking for. He couldn't read any of the texts on the books anyway so he merely looked at them to occupy himself as he didn't want to bother her.

Finally Eun Soo found one and began skimming through the pages. When she gave a sigh of relief, Choi Young felt relieved as well. He wasn't sure about what really worried her but he guessed it was something about what they had left behind in Goryeo.

"That is the book that records the events on earth?" Choi Young asked.

"It's a book that records history, yes." Eun Soo responded. "You are still in history and it still says we managed to take back Gaegyeong so everything should be fine. This means we are still able to go back."

Eun Soo was finally smiling again and this lightened Choi Young's heart. However, the news that they had to take back Gaegyeong meant they had lost the war and he wasn't too happy about that.

"It's okay." Eun Soo reassured him. "The King is safe. He still rules Goryeo, so everything is going to be fine."

"What King?"

Eun Soon turned towards the speaker and saw her mother on the doorway. Seo Yun had seen Eun Soo rush inside the house and unable to fight against her curiosity had decided to check on what her daughter was up to.

"I was just telling Choi Young something about history." Eun Soo lied as she closed the textbook and placed it on her hand bag.

 _And what would that have to do with assuring Choi Young that the King was safe?_ Seo Yeon thought to herself but she let it go. She'd sensed from before that her daughter was hiding something. And a wedding in a weeks time, there was definitely something behind it. However, she was going to believe in her daughter. If it was something she needed to know about then Eun Soo would tell her.

"You need to book the function hall and choose from the menu options." Seo Yun said waiving a list in her hands.

Eun Soo immediately went to her mother to take the list from her. She waived the list at Choi Young. "Now food, this is the part I cannot miss." she said as she walked towards Choi Young's bed and flopped down onto it. "Hmmm... they seem to have more choices than I thought they would."

Choi Young looked at Eun Soo then at her mother. He expected disapproval in her mother's eyes at Eun Soo's actions but instead there was a tender longing on her face that made Choi Young wonder at her thoughts.

 _"You need to help me with these decisions too oppa." Seo Yun had flopped down on that same bed Eun Soo was sitting on. The man she was talking to was lying face down on one side of the bed with a book in his hands. He seemed to be deep in study but he still turned to her to give her a smile._

Seo Yun shook her head away from her thoughts as she faced Choi Young. "You need to watch what she chooses, else she'll order enough to feed a battalion." And then she left.

Choi Young sighed as he walked over to where Eun Soo sat. It seemed Eun Soo's parents were as unpredictable as their daughter. Eun Soo had the papers pressed in the bed and her head was bent down in concentration, marking circles on some items. She seemed to have already marked a lot. "Your mother said not to get too much."

Eun Soo raised her head and gave him an innocent look. "I'm not." Then she looked back down to encircle another item. "I'm just making sure we have enough. Don't worry I might not be good at cooking but I am an expert when it comes to eating."

Choi Young could only shake his head as he chuckled to himself. How her mother expected him to stop Eun Soo from doing anything was beyond him. He would rather fight the entire Red Turban army than have an argument with her.

Then she was suddenly standing and calling for him to follow. "Let's go book the function hall."

...

The next day the whole village was in a buzz with excitement. The village was small so as soon as their one and only function hall was booked everyone became a party to their wedding. The excitement was such that it seemed like they were preparing for a festival.

The moment Eun Soo got out of her room she was swept away by three girls who immediately started talking about gowns and cakes and flowers. One of the girls who was the oldest of the group at age twenty-one, was the tailor shop owner's daughter and she had brought with her piles of white cloth for Eun Soo to choose from.

Eun Soo was sitting on the couch with the piles of cloth between her and the tailor's daughter who sat at the other end. The other two girls sat on the mat on the floor facing her.

"We don't usually make wedding gowns without a month's notice at least, but eomma said she would make it in five days time so euisanim can try it on." The girl said excitedly. Eun Soo remembered her name was Hwan Mi Ran, she was but a little kid when Eun Soo last saw her however, she knew her mother Hae Chae Won quite well.

Even as a child Eun Soo was someone who could not sit still. There wasn't much to do in the village as such she had tried all the jobs there was to try. Sewing was one of those things she did not excel at, however she still came to the shop to admire the dress designs as well as entertain everyone with enchanting stories which the seamstresses proclaimed had inspired their creativity.

The other girl Lee Seung Ah was nineteen and was learning the ropes to take over her family's bakery. "Appa said he can't leave euisanim to make her own cake because it might look like melted ice cream." She said this in a shy, almost fearful voice. But she smiled when Eun Soo laughed.

Eun Soo remembered the village baker Lee Ki Moon shouting at her to leave as he was loosing profit with her help. He had such a temper. Though she had broken more eggs into the floor than into the bowl so his wrath was actually justified. But Eun Soo still came by every Sunday, and despite Ki Moon's grumbling the child had been a ray of light in his otherwise austere life after loosing his wife during childbirth. They had only been married for a year and the loss had almost broken him apart.

Jo Soo Hee however was more excited about something else rather than the wedding. She was the daughter of Jo Dae Su, owner of the village supermarket and the richest person in their area. His younger brother Jo Dong Ha had been Eun Soo's crush for the longest time and Dae Su had never failed to tease Eun Soo about it. Like Seung Ah, Soo Hee was nineteen.

"Euisanim, please tell us how you met each other." Soo Hee's eyes were bright with curiosity. "I heard euisanim's groom is really hot. The girls at the function hall said so. Where is he from? Does he have any siblings?"

"Soo Hee-yah that's not very polite." Mi Ran reprimanded glaring at the younger girl.

"That's alright." Eun Soo said with a smile in her voice. "And you don't have to address me so formally. We are all family here, so can you call me eonni instead?" The girls nodded happily.

She could understand the craving for excitement that the girls felt, she knew life in the village could be stiffing and anything new was a welcomed diversion. "I really hated him when I met him." Eun Soo started, the storyteller in her getting into the mood. "I called him a psychopath because he had such cold eyes so devoid of emotion. He commanded me to follow him and cure someone as if he owned me, he made me so angry."

Instead of being repelled by the description the girls seemed to be more intrigued and thrilled. "So how did the two of you fall in love?" Seung Ah asked forgetting her shyness as her curiosity for romance got the better of her.

Eun Soo actually had to think about it. "I'm not really sure." She looked at the girls' confused faces and explained. "Even though I hated him, and was extremely mad at him, I couldn't stay away. I was always concerned about him, always wanted to see him, always wanted to be near him... I must have been the crazy one, right?" she said with a chuckle.

But the three girls were shaking their heads in disagreement. "I think that is so romantic." Seung Ah said with a sigh.

"So when Eun Soo-eonni was no longer angry at him, you realized what's left is just wanting to be with him." Mi Ran said concluding Eun Soo's story herself, clutching dramatically at her heart.

"So how did you find out he loved you? Did he confess? How?" Soo Hee was always the more aggressive of the three and spoke boldly.

Eun Soo thought for a moment before she replied. "Well, there was this other person who wanted to marry me for his own convenient reasons and Choi Young-ssi came barging in asking me to stay with him instead."

The statement made the girls giddy with excitement. But Soo Hee wasn't done with her questions. "Did Eun Soo-eonni really plan to marry that other person."

"Of course not." Eun Soo replied without pause this time. "But he was a really powerful person and I didn't want him to use his authority to hurt Choi Young."

"He is not going to appear here and try to stop your wedding, right?" Mi Ran's eyes were now wide with concern. "Is this the reason why Eun Soo-eonni is trying to wed in haste?"

Eun Soo brought her index finger to her lips as if letting the girls know it was their secret. The girls nodded their heads in eager support. "But you don't need to worry, Choi Young-ssi has served the army for years, he is a really good fighter and he has powerful connections as well, so we should be alright. He has always protected me." Eun Soo reassured them with a smile.

"As a person named after the great general, Eun Soo-eonni's groom seem to be just as cool like in the books." Mi Ran said in awe.

"Maybe I should go get a career in the city like Eun Soo-eonni so I can meet a man." Soo Hee spoke passionately. "Are there plenty of men like him in Seoul?"

Eun Soo smiled at the question. "Not that I know of. But then I didn't really meet him in Seoul." She told them with a wink which made them more wide eyed.

"Who did you not meet in Seoul?" Choi Young had just entered the living room to see Eun Soo surrounded by giggling young girls. At first he had thought to just leave them alone as he didn't really want to get involved in talks between the female gender. However when she mentioned meeting someone in Seoul he became curious as to what she was talking about.

Eun Soo's smile brightened further as she turned towards him. "I was just telling them about how I met you."

Choi Young looked at her in disbelief. "Really?"

This made Eun Soo laugh. "Don't worry I left out the gory details and just gave them tidbits of information." She said the last part to the girls with another wink seeing as they were now gaping at Choi Young as if seeing a celebrity. "Anyway, girls meet Choi Young. And this is Mi Ran, Soo Hee and Seung Ah, they are currently helping me with the wedding preparations."

Soo Hee immediately rose and offered her hand. "So nice to meet you."

Remembering what Eun Soo told him about a handshake, Choi Young took her offered hand in a light grasp which she immediately shook up and down. The other girls followed suit.

"The girls at the function hall were not lying, you are so hot!" Soo Hee blurted out just as the last handshake was done which made her friends look at her in aghast. Mi Ran pushed her back down on the floor afraid of what she may say next. She looked at Choi Young in silent apology, not knowing what to say. Seung Ah sat back down with Soo Hee, clutching at her arm.

Choi Young looked at Eun Soo in confusion. She was watching the whole scenario in amusement. "She just told you that they find you extremely attractive." Eun Soo explained.

He looked really uncomfortable upon hearing her words that it made Eun Soo almost take pity on him, but he actually faced the girls and bowed his head in their direction. "Thank you." he said which made the girls blush uncontrollably.

Eun Soo pulled at Choi Young's sleeve laughter still alight in her eyes. "I think you should get out of here before they drop dead in your feet."

Choi Young left still befuddled by what had just transpired. The preparations continued with the girls continuously asking Eun Soo questions about Choi Young. Soon the whole village was talking about nothing but the couple and their wedding.

...

"You look so beautiful." Seo Yun said with misty eyes as Mi Ran finished putting on the final touches of Eun Soo's make up. The four of them including Soo Hee were in the function hall's female dressing room getting Eun Soo prepped for her wedding.

Eun Soo's wedding gown was a gorgeous mix of a modern wedding gown and a Korean Hanbok. The top was a tube in glittering mother of pearl colors, that left her shoulders bare. A thin pale yellow ribbon was tied into a bow just below her left breast with one ribbon's tail reaching the tip of the gown that had sunk into the floor, while the other only reaching halfway. Laces in the form of flowers trailed from on top of her left breast up until the bow and then splitting into a huge balloon of coverings into the sides, meeting on the back in a long trail. The skirt was in shears like that of a traditional hanbok all in pure white with the laces falling over it. The gown was really long that even with high heels, it covered both Eun Soo's shoes.

On her neck was a simple diamond collar necklace and she wore diamond earrings in the form of teardrops.

Eun Soo looked towards the door expecting Choi Young to appear but it was still closed. It had taken her awhile to get ready so he should be done by now. This had been the tenth time she had glanced at the door. Why was he not here to come and get her yet?

Her apprehension at having Choi Young out of her sight for too long was something new to Eun Soo. Back in Goryeo, she had always been good at occupying herself with other things whenever he was away. But the incident with Taizu had her on edge and made her afraid that he would somehow disappear back to the past without her.

She strode towards the door and opened it hoping that he was merely waiting outside. When she didn't find him there she decided to walk to the men's dressing room instead.

"Wait Eun Soo-yah, where are you going?" Her mother called. But Eun Soo merely pulled her dress up and began walking faster.

"She never does anything if she doesn't understand the reason for it." Jo Dong Ha said with a laugh. "Even our teachers had a hard time telling her to do anything, but she got really good grades, so they all loved her."

Dong Ha had been helping Choi Young with his suit but they had been done a long time ago. Choi Young had on a three piece white tuxedo. The jacket was white with a light gray lining at the collar that went down to the waist line, the color of which complemented the light gray vest. The rest, including the pants, shirt and even the bow tie was all white.

Upon finishing, Dong Ha declared that it was still too early and that Eun Soo was probably still getting ready. Although he wanted to see her, Choi Young instead leaned on the closet door listening more on Dong Ha's stories about Eun Soo.

In the past few days, he had heard so many tales of her childhood and teenage days that he could probably write a book about it. She was like a whirlwind, except that instead of leaving destruction at her wake, she left smiling faces instead.

"But at the same time she always has to do something." Dong Ha was chattering on. "If she believed something was unjustified, she could not leave it alone. If it weren't for that audaciousness, she probably would have become the most popular girl in school, seeing that she had both beauty and smarts."

Choi Young had began to feel uncomfortable. He always loved hearing about Eun Soo, although he'd mostly gotten stories about her through married couples who were about ten to twenty years her senior, some have also been from women her age who had gone to school with her. But for some reason, hearing it from a man her age who seem to actually know her so much didn't sit so well with him.

He was about to suggest they wait outside her dressing room when the door opened slightly and a head peeked in.

"Imja?" Choi Young said in surprise.

She opened the door wide as she entered in her full wedding glory, marching up to him in annoyance. "What's taking you so long?"

Dong Ha who had been gaping at Eun Soo as soon as she had barged in, quickly checked his watch. "But we are still thirty minutes early for the photography session."

Eun Soo glanced at him as if just noticing he was there. "Dong Ha-yah, your niece needs help with something. Go help her out."

Dong Ha looked dubious. "Soo Hee? What would she need me for? Where is she anyway?"

Eun Soo was looking at him as if he had gone daft. "Just go?"

Dong Ha finally understood. "Ah! I'm sorry," he told Choi Young. "I need to go help my niece, see you later." he said as he left in a rush. But he stopped as soon as he got to the door and he chuckled as he addressed Eun Soo. "You still haven't changed a single bit Eun Soo-yah." he said before he left, closing the door behind him.

As soon as the door closed, Choi Young walked towards Eun Soo, looking her over. She had never looked so beautiful as she was today. Her red hair was draped in curls on her right shoulder, with some of her hair piled on top of her head leaving small curls to fall and frame her face.

Her lips were tinted in a light shade of orange, almost like the sky during sunrise. And her shoulders and arms were bare except for her jewelry. He quickly pulled his thoughts away from her bare skin as he looked into her eyes. "Dong Ha was just telling me more stories about you."

Eun Soo frowned at that. "And what did he say?"

"He said you were both smart and beautiful." Choi Young said nonchalantly. "He seems to like you a lot."

Eun Soo gave a small laugh. "We were really close when we were in grade school, then he turned sixteen and started liking demure and sweet girls." Eun Soo shook her head at the memory. "I would actually make him lunch boxes and tail him around in campus trying to get his heart back, I even posted a picture of him in my room... I must have been crazy to do that." She said the last words softly as if speaking to herself. "But he was both rich and popular and..."

"Imja." Choi Young interrupted as he took another step towards her so there was almost no space between them. "I don't really want to hear anything about him."

Eun Soo narrowed her eyes contemplating what he just said. Then she moved her head from side to side as if trying to study his expression. "Whoa, are you jealous?" she said in a teasing voice.

Choi Young didn't answer. It was illogical, he knew. It wasn't as if he believed Eun Soo was still attracted to the man, it might be arrogant of him, but he was confident that Eun Soo cared about him more than anyone else, past or present.

It had nothing to do with that at all. It was just that the thought that she had shared so much more memories with another man other than him twisted at his heart. It was not something that she had control of and definitely not something she could change, so there was no logic at all to feeling the way he did. And yet, he could not stop his heart from aching while she talked about that person.

Eun Soo had not really believed it to be true when she'd teased him, but when he didn't say anything she began to regret telling him about Dong Ha. Thinking about it, she felt stupid. It was their wedding day so why in the heavens would she even talk about a topic like that.

It became one of those very rare moments when she was rendered speechless. She wanted to explain but what was there to say? She knew he wasn't jealous about her relationship with Dong Ha, a man who would wait four years for a woman was not that kind of insecure person, which left only one thing, he was not happy about her memories with him.

Hence, she decided to skip the topic for now. She moved a step back and twirled in front of him. "So what do you think of my dress?"

Choi Young actually frowned at her question. In Goryeo, only Kisaengs would dare show as much skin. But then he had seen Eun Soo on what she called 'shorts' and a 'tank top'. At that time he had wanted to cover her with a blanket but everyone seemed to think it was normal so he had resisted the urge.

Although he'd tolerated her clothing habits since they were in her world, he still did not understand how men in heaven could allow having their women be so exposed. Plenty of times when he saw men gawking at her in wrong places, he wanted to cover her up or slash their eyes, or both.

However, he could not deny that she looked extremely beautiful in the dress. He met her eyes and gave her a slight smile. "You look like something that came out of a mystical painting."

The compliment surprised Eun Soo. But then she smiled back. "You look really gorgeous as well, you will probably have all the girls swooning before the wedding is through."

Choi Young sighed. "I think I've just lost all my dignity as a warrior."

Eun Soo laughed at that. Then she encircled her arms around his waist and spoke whilst looking down at his chest. "You know, I have so many good memories both in this world and in Goryeo, but do you know what the happiest memory in my life is?"

Then she raised her head to meet his eyes not waiting for him to speak. "It was the moment when you asked me to stay with you. And that memory overshadows any other that I've had in my life."

Choi Young felt overwhelmed with emotion at her words. He raised his right hand to touch her cheek.

Eun Soo eyes were locked into his. "Let's make more memories together." It was a promise, and Choi Young nodded unable to get any word out.

At that moment the door opened and Mi Ran peeked in. "I'm sorry to bother you guys but you need to get down for the photo session."

Eun Soo smiled before she released her arms from his waist. Then she turned to follow Mi Ran with Choi Young walking behind her.

...

The function hall was a multipurpose facility used by the village for multiple events, weddings included. Thus, they had everything prepared to make the room quite similar to that of a wedding hall. The aisle was set in the middle between rows of seats which usually separated the bride and groom's guests.

In this case, the seats were filled by everyone in the village who could attend without care to which side of the family the guests belonged to. Eun Soo's mother was seated in the front seat with another empty seat beside her reserved for her husband. Seo Yun had on a traditional hanbok unlike her husband who was wearing a black modern tux.

The announcer, who was a plump man in his forties, took his position on the side of the stage to start the ceremony.

"The wedding of Choi Young and Yoo Eun Soo will now commence. The honorable Gwon Nam Il will preside as churye (Master of Ceremonies)."

Gwon Nam Il was also the village's Saemaul leader and was a close friend of Eun Soo's father. In most weddings, it was the groom's family who actually chose the churye but the whole village had taken Choi Young as one of their own, just like Eun Soo's family, and all family divisions have been set aside.

"The groom will now enter the hall." The announcer continued after the churye took his place at the podium which was at the center of the small stage. A soft processional music started to play.

Choi Young walked down the aisle in quick, long strides which was met with sweet sighs by some of the girls seating on the sides. The serious expression on his face did not change their mood at all as they gushed about his good looks.

The moment he reached the podium, he gave a small bow to the churye before turning to face the entrance.

"The bride will now enter the hall." This time the music changed to something louder but with a slower beat and Eun Soo entered the door to walk down the aisle, escorted by her father.

Unlike Choi Young, Eun Soo's steps were slow. The aisle was quite narrow and her gown was huge and heavy. A long veil had been placed on top of her hair and she held a bouquet of white and yellow cornelian cherry blossoms.

Eun Soo's eyes misted as soon as she entered the hall. Eun Soo was not the type of person who cried at weddings. Although the wedding this time was her own, it wasn't the occasion that made her so emotional.

She had not seen the wedding hall since yesterday when they came to get instructions on how the wedding would progress, thus the bouquets of yellow aster flowers that decorated the sides of the aisles took her completely by surprise.

Aster was not a flower that grew in their area and she wondered how Choi Young managed to get so many of them. Her eyes met Choi Young's who gave her a small smile as he waited near the side of the podium. Her eyes never left his during the whole procession as she did her best not to cry at the thought of the flowers.

But the memories swirled all over her starting with when she had offered him the flower as a gift, then finding out he had kept the flower inside the aspirin bottle, up to her desperation to send him a message by planting the flowers on the spot that he had laid dying. Then she remembered the flowers swaying beside the tree where she found him waiting for her.

Before she knew it, she was standing before Choi Young and he was offering his arm for her to take. She clutched at his arm as if it were a lifeline. Ho Jun took the seat beside his wife.

"Thank you." Eun Soo whispered as soon as her father left the stage.

Choi Young looked at her as if asking: _For what?_

"For waiting for me all those years."

"I will always wait for you, even if it takes forver." Choi Young was smiling down at her as he spoke the words.

Eun Soo felt like she was going to bawl her eyes out and was thankful when the announcer spoke, cutting through her thoughts.

"The bride and groom will now bow to each other."

Eun Soo released her hold on Choi Young's arm as they gave each other respectful bows. Then they turned to face the churye. The next events went like a blur to Eun Soo. The churye read their vows which they both affirmed. Rings were exchanged, then a chaste kiss, after which the churye gave his words of wisdom for the couple. And then it was over.

"The bride and groom will now give their greetings."

Eun Soo and Choi Young both faced Eun Soo's parents first and gave a deep bow. Then they faced everyone and gave another bow. The guests applauded and the recessional music was played as Choi Young and Eun Soo walked down the aisle, this time as man and wife.

...

Eun Soo was drunk. After the wedding reception the couple, along with Eun Soo's parents went home and that's when Eun Soo started a drinking session.

As Ho Jun could not drink much, Eun Soo delighted at taking his share of drinks and it wasn't long before she was already slurring her words. Seo Yun had no compunction against drinking but she seemed to have more tolerance to alchohol than her daughter as she managed to drink as well as serve heaps of food at the table.

"Not once have I ever imagined myself marrying a warrior." Eun Soo told Choi Young as she waved her bottle at him. She had stopped pouring from awhile back and had started to just drink from the bottle. "Especially not one that came out from history books."

"Imja, you are talking nonsense now." Choi Young pried the bottle away from her grasp, at least he tried to as being drunk seem to have given her more strength as she pulled the bottle and drank from it instead.

Choi Young gave her parents an apologetic look which Ho Jun answered with a laugh. "We are the ones that's sorry for giving you such a troublesome daughter."

"What?" Eun Soo said glaring at them. "I'm a wonderful daughter. I study hard, I work all day, and still I managed to bring you this amazing man who believes in loyalty and duty. Isn't he something? How did you manage to get all those aster flowers anyway?"

"The people in the village helped me with it." Choi Young finally managed to pull the bottle away from her. "That's enough drinks for you!"

But Seo Yun was laughing. "I hope your new wife doesn't drive you insane before you even start your marriage."

"Hey, I'm a good wife." Eun Soo grumbled as she reached out for a new unopened bottle. "As long as you feed me well that is." she was smiling drunkenly at him as she said this and Choi Young chuckled despite himself.

Since when had it been that he found smiling and laughing as a norm each day? This smiling person beside him was now his wife, and that alone filled his heart with so much joy that smiling and laughing alone was not enough to express it.

A knock came to the door and Choi Young volunteered to answer it seeing as Seo Yun was busy keeping the bottles out of Eun Soo's reach. He was surprised when a child stood behind the door. It was one of the kids in the village, Choi Young had seen him before.

"There is a man who wants to see you. He said he will be waiting at the cornelian cherry tree near the greenhouse."

Choi Young wasn't sure the kid got the right person. He had met a lot of acquaintances in the week he had been in the village and they had all been really friendly. But he could not think of one who he was close enough to actually ask to go meet him at this time of night.

"Are you sure the message is for me?"

The kid nodded then passed him a piece of paper before turning to walk away.

Choi Young eyes followed the retreating figure before opening the piece of paper. He might need to have Eun Soo read the message for him. But Choi Young paled as soon as he saw the characters in the paper. It was in Chinese and it read: _Has the General abandoned his King?_

Choi Young looked into the direction of the living room and saw his in-laws were busy keeping Eun Soo away from more alchohol. He slipped out of the door and slid it close behind him.

The greenhouse wasn't very far from Eun Soo's house and soon the single cornelian cherry tree was in view. It was about eight in the evening and it was already dark outside, but he could still clearly see the figure of a man leaning on the tree.

Choi Young studied the man as soon as his features became clearly visible. He was not someone he had met before. He was in black jeans and a black shirt thus he didn't really look like someone who came from his world either. However, Choi Young was wearing jeans himself so he could not be really sure.

"You sent me a message." Choi Young spoke first.

Taizu had been observing Choi Young as he approached. Even in modern clothing, the man still exuded strength and power. However there was a slight difference to the intensity of his aura. It felt calming instead of fierce.

Taizu stopped leaning on the tree to face Choi Young. "Yes, unfortunately I cannot delay any longer than this. Anything past tomorrow will open a portal to a different time and then it will be too late."

Choi Young narrowed his eyes at his words. "Explain the message you sent me, starting with who you are."

"You can call me Taizu." he replied. "And I am someone who can open the portal to send you back to your world. If you don't go back by tomorrow it will be too late to retake Gaegyeong among other things. Your role in history will be erased. And this place you are living now might be erased along with it."

"And why should I believe you?" Choi Young asked calmly.

"Because she does." Taizu's response was immediate. "The reason she is so confident that you will be able to go back is that she knows I will open the gate for you. We cannot risk changing history."

At his words Choi Young took a step forward and Taizu could see his aura had turned menacing. "And how do you know her?"

 _He must be Eun Soo's guardian of some sorts because he always seem to be watching out for her. He was the one who threatened me to break up with her when I had been planning on proposing. He was really scary._

Jung Min's words came back to Choi Young and lightning started crackling all over his body. He raised his right hand and sent lightning to strike at Taizu but he blocked it with a shield of wind.

Wind powers. This time Choi Young was now really angry. He concentrated the lightning on his right hand as his anger rose at the thought of what this person had almost done to Eun Soo. "You almost killed her. And you dare show yourself in front of me. You must be ready to die."

But Taizu looked unfazed. "So you will kill me, and then what?" his voice was calm. "She is alive because of me. You say you will protect her? How? By bringing her with you in a land filled with war and death where she is wanted at every turn by people who wants to take advantage of her knowledge? A place where very powerful people send someone like me to get rid of her in order to preserve history?"

The lightning in Choi Young's hands started dying out at his words. But Taizu continued "Yes, I shot her, I shot her so you can take her back to where she belongs. You think that gate just opened by itself just when you needed it the most? I opened it for her to enter. So if you really want to protect her, then you will go back to where you belong in history and leave her here."

Choi Young clenched his fist as the lightning disappeared. Taizu sighed his last words. "I am just a warrior like you. Even if you get rid of me, they will merely send more people, and they will not care about her like I do. They will do anything to get rid of her."

"Why do you care?" Although Choi Young asked the question, his heart was not really interested in his answer as at the moment it was dropping lower into the pits of his stomach ready to crumble at the slightest pressure.

"She saved my life."

"From the poison?" Choi Young found that a bit hard to believe. If Jung Min had been referring to this person as Eun Soo's guardian, then he could have killed Eun Soo at anytime before that incident.

"No, from way before that."

 _If you feel that guilty then you need to start by righting the wrongs that you have done. If you die, then the people who had suffered to get you to this point would have suffered needlessly. Don't you think you are just running away?_

Her bright smile as she looked up at him seared Taizu's memory. She had offered her hand to him and he had taken it.

"If I stay..."

"You can't." Taizu interrupted the question. "You are too important in history not to make any difference. I know you people like to call this place heaven, but you must already know that it is not. Whatever you do in Goryeo affects this place. If you don't go back, everything that you see here might no longer exist. Including her."

When Choi Young still hesitated Taizu sighed. "I will open the gate here, in this same spot, by sunrise tomorrow. It will be open for five hours so make your decision by then. If you bring her with you I will not stop you. I think I have already done everything I can to save her, the rest is up to you."

...

Seo Yun was already cleaning up when Choi Young got back. Eun Soo had her head slumped at the table fast asleep. Ho Jun got up to try to move her. "I'll go bring her to her room."

"I'll take her." Choi Young offered as he walked to where Eun Soo was sitting. Ho Jun sat back down, leaving Eun Soo to Choi Young. He watched as Choi Young took Eun Soo carefully in his arms. Seo Yun opened the door for them and then closed it behind them.

She looked towards her husband before she left for the kitchen. Ho Jun was calmly taking a sip from his drink. She had wanted to ask Choi Young about where he had been as he had disappeared for quite some time. But the dark look in his eyes as he came back prevented her from saying anything.

Inside, Choi Young placed Eun Soo on her bed then arranged the blanket to cover her. He sat at the side of the bed to watch her sleeping. She moved in her sleep raising her left arm as if reaching for something. "Are you there?"

Choi Young captured her outreached hand and laced her fingers with hers. "I'm here." He almost choked at the words, knowing this would be the last time he would be able to say those words to her.

No matter how much he thought about it, that other person was right. Bringing Eun Soo back to Goryeo would just be placing her in harms way. He had thought to always protect her but talking to Taizu made him realize that he had merely been too arrogant. If she was being targeted by people who can open portals to different worlds, then even if he had the ability to fight them all, it can only mean he had to be beside her at all times.

The problem was he knew that could never happen. They were going back to a warring nation. There will be many times where he would have to leave her for days to go to battle. How would he be able to protect her then?

He still remembered when she had been kidnapped by Gi Chul while he had been out defending his King. At that time he had not been left with a choice. But this time he was given one. He had the choice to leave her somewhere safe, in her world, or take her with him and leave her in the midst of danger.

If he would but decide with his mind, the choice was perfectly obvious. But his heart rebelled at the mere thought of it. His heart was in agony and he felt like it was going to break apart at any moment.

A small voice escaped her throat and he realized he had been squeezing her hand so hard. He tried to slip his hand away but she held on to it tightly. He bowed his head and squeezed his eyes shut trying to control his emotions.

Then he opened his eyes and looked down at her sleeping face. "I'm not very good with words so I might not have told you clearly, but by now you should already know how I feel about you."

With his other hand he touched her cheek. "I love you Eun Soo." Tears fell from his eyes and he had to release her cheek to swipe at them. Then he bent down and kissed her softly on her forehead. "I will always love you."

Then with his resolution set, he hardened his heart and pried her hands away from his placing it slowly down. Then he walked out of her room and went to his to change.

...

It was still an hour before sunrise but he decided to go there early. He wanted to talk to the man named Taizu to assure himself that no one would dare harm her in this world. He had donned back on his black robes and boots. The house was silent as Choi Young walked towards the living room door.

He glanced at Eun Soo's room, her door was closed and she was probably still sleeping. He wanted to go see her for the last time but he stopped himself. His heart was already hanging by a thread, it will not take much for it to fall and shatter. He had to go now.

A figure was leaning on the tree as it came to view. Taizu must have come early as well. But as he drew closer it became obvious that the person wasn't Taizu and Choi Young stopped on his tracks as he realized who it was.

The person started walking towards him in quick angry steps. "You are not going anywhere without me."

Choi Young could not say a word as he was too busy steeling his heart for what would come next. This was what he had dreaded the most. To face her like this and see the pain and sorrow in her eyes. It was hard enough to bear his own pain, but he knew he would carry hers forever as well.

"Go home." He said in a cold voice.

Eun Soo threw the hand bag she was carrying at him. "How dare you. How dare you make decisions for my own life. So you want to protect me by leaving me here forever? Why do you get to be the only one who decides that? It's my life, I choose what I'm willing to risk it for and what not!"

"Imja." Choi Young's voice was still cold as ice and it scared Eun Soo more than his temper. The moment he had left her room she had sobbed for hours alone in her bed. She knew Choi Young too well to recognize a 'goodbye' when she heard one. Taizu must have talked to him, there was no other reason she could think of why he would act this way. She knew it was going to be really hard to convince Choi Young to take her with him now. Once he had decided on something, he was just as stubborn as her.

She could always cross the portal after him but she was afraid that she might end up in a different time than where he would be. And how long would it take for her to find him again. Another four years? She didn't even know how the gate had opened the last time.

"I am going back to a war." Choi Young was speaking in the same frosty voice. "I have to protect the King as well as the kingdom of Goryeo, I really cannot bear any more burden than that."

His words were like an arrow to Eun Soo's heart. Being Choi Young's burden had been her number one concern since she'd fallen in love with him. The fact that Choi Young had been captured, put to prison, stolen the king's seal as well as labelled a traitor, all because of her laid heavily on her heart. It was the main reason that she had not been able to push the issue of her staying in Goryeo before he had made the offer.

For a long time she had wanted to ask him if she could just stay by his side instead of going back. But as a person who was a burden, she had really no right to ask it of him. Hence, she had been so happy when he'd asked her to stay and promised to protect her forever.

Thus hearing him say he could not bear her as a burden made her feel like her heart had broken apart.

Choi Young took hold of her wrist and started dragging her back towards the house. But Eun Soo fought off his hold, that he either had to release her or hurt her with his grip. Choi Young let go.

"So what about your promise to protect me? Does that mean nothing now? How can you protect me if you are not with me?" Eun Soo challenged as soon as he released her wrist.

"If you stay here then you will be safe."

"Because if I go with you I will just be a burden that you don't want to carry." She didn't even phrase it as a question.

"Yes." Choi Young could not look her in the eye. He knew he was hurting her and his heart throbbed with her pain as much as his own. He had to find a way to stop her from saying anything more as the thread that held his heart had began to stretch and if it broke his heart would shatter and he didn't think he would be able to pick up the pieces after that.

Eun Soo felt like she could hear the cracking of her heart. However, she knew he didn't mean it. _I will always love you._ He had said. She knew that right now he was just saying what he believed could get through to her and make her stay. The knowledge didn't make his words any less hurtful but it gave her the courage to stand up to him.

She stepped closer to him and tried to look him in the eye. But he wouldn't meet her gaze. "I don't care." Eun Soo declared as she stood up straighter to glare at him. "I don't care about things like being a burden. But tell me, look me in the eyes and tell me you don't want to be with me anymore and I will let you go. Tell me you don't want me anymore and I will let you leave." She was crying now but she continued. "Tell me you never want to see me again and I will remain here and stay without you."

Choi Young clenched his teeth to keep himself from breaking apart. How could she ask him to say those things when he could barely stand with just saying 'yes' to not wanting to carry her.

"Just tell me!" Eun Soo shouted and the thread that held his heart broke flooding him with a million shards of pain.

"How?" He finally met her eyes and the pain he saw in them made the shards of his heart bury deeper and deeper into his soul. "How can I tell you I don't want to be with you when every part of me wants to be near you? How can I tell you, I don't want you when you are the only one I want whether in heaven or in earth? How can I tell you I don't want to ever see you again when just the thought of leaving you makes me feel like I am dying?"

Tears were now falling fast in Eun Soo face but she ignored it to cup at his cheek. "Then take me with you."

"I can't" His voice was hoarse with unshed tears. "I need to protect you."

"Then let me stay with you."

"I can't always be there."

"Then I will follow you to where you are."

"It's too danger..." He wasn't able to finish his sentence as Eun Soo stood on the tip of her toes and brushed her lips against his. Unlike the other times when she'd kissed him, her lips lingered on his, brushing once and then twice before letting him go. Her lips were wet with her tears and he was left with the imprint of her kiss even after it was over.

"Let me keep my promise too." Eun Soo was looking up at him with a small smile despite the tears pouring on her face. "I promised never to leave you again, please let me keep it."

Choi Young looked down at her tear streaked face and then at those smiling lips that had just touched his. He closed his eyes as a groan of defeat escaped him and he bent down to capture her lips with his own.

He kissed her hungrily as if he was a man deprived of water and her lips were sweet wine. When she opened her mouth to kiss him back he inclined his head to deepen the kiss, moving his lips over hers as if he could not get enough of her. Her arms snaked around his neck to hold on to him and he placed his right hand on the small of her back to support her as the kiss went deeper and deeper. And then he was trailing kisses down cheek and her neck and into the hollow of her collar bone.

Unbidden, his left hand crept up to cup her right breast which made Eun Soo gasp in surprise. She almost stumbled as Choi Young released his hold on her, shocked at himself. They were outside in a public area, and although it was still dark, it was not impossible for an early riser to be suddenly up and about. And he had... he had lost all sense of propriety.

He looked to meet her gaze expecting to see shock and mortification but she only gave him a small embarrassed smile. She had picked up her hand bag and was offering her right hand to him which he took in a daze. Then she was leading him to the small shack that was her uncle's.

Eun Soo released Choi Young's hand as he closed the door behind them. She placed her bag on the table then turned to face him. Choi Young moved to stand in front of her, looking at her doubtfully. "Imja, are you sure about this?"

"I'm your wife am I not?" she answered, meeting his doubtful gaze with a reassuring smile. Choi Young didn't need any more encouragement than that. He held her neck in one hand and claimed her lips once more in a fervent kiss that left Eun Soo clinging to him for support. Then he started kissing her more slowly. The heart that had been shattered into pieces was slowly being mended with each brush of their lips. He was still scared that he would not be able to protect her. But the feel of her softness pressed into his hard frame reassured him they will be alright. As long as they were together they would find a way. _We will be okay._ He surrendered to the cravings of his heart.

...

NEXT Chapter 7: The Kingdom of Goryeo - Choi Young and Eun Soo are back in the past, however six months has already passed since they left Goryeo and Gaegyeong had already fallen. On their way to meet the King they are besieged by Red Turban Troops. It seems like their leader General Sha Liu has ordered the capture of the great doctor. But for what purpose?

Author's notes: A korean modern wedding is actually quite fast and not that memorable at all. I did my best to add some personal stuff to the wedding to make it more emotional but I'm also thinking of adding a _paebaek_ to this chapter. I'm still thinking about it.

I also thought long and hard on whether to write a love scene. In fact I actually started to write one and had placed bold disclaimer warnings at the title part. But it just didn't suit this couple at all. Graphic desire is really not what they are all about. I'm not saying they don't have any, but it's just not for display. I might edit this chapter if I suddenly think otherwise.

So we are going back to the past which means we won't be seeing the couple always together like in the future timeline, and they just got married, I know. Well, it's a hard life for them.


	8. Chapter 7: The Kingdom of Goryeo Part I

Chapter 7: The Kingdom of Goryeo Part I

Author's Notes: First, sorry for the very long time update. But I've been busy working on a game project so I really do apologize for the long delay. I'm still really busy so **I have decided to cut the chapters into small parts so I can write updates little by little**.

Anyway, starting from Chapter 7 I will be writing some historical facts at the end of a chapter so people can have a background on the characters. Please note that the story will not unfold the same as history since this is a time travel story which means a lot in history has been altered (and also this is a fantasy story).

edits: Changed **Pyongyang** to **Seogyeong** to be consistent with the use of names during the Goryeo period.

...

 _"Whatever you are thinking of doing, it's a bad idea." Eun Soo was on top of the hospital building panting as she had just walked about seven floors worth of stairs. The child had climed over one of the walls of the hospital roof deck and was sitting on it casually as if the height was something he can jump over easily. The hospital had eleven floors._

 _She had just heard about the boy's sister. As the parents where still a no show, she had wondered about where the boy had gone. After asking questions about him to almost every personnel she met, she managed to to get information from an intern that she had seen a lone child climbing up the stairs. The intern had tried to go after him as it was already very late at night but the child had disappeared so fast and she had patients to take care of._

 _Eun Soo had felt uneasy. The impasive look on his face as the man berated him on the hallway haunted her. No child should have that kind of expression. Before realizing what she was doing, she had climbed the stairs to the roof deck._

 _The child looked back to face her. The lack of emotion on his face made Eun Soo's heart race in fear. Why did this have to happen to her? Should she just call 119? It seems that no one in the hospital had noticed that they had a possible jumper. She wanted to call for help but at the same time she was afraid to alarm the child and hasten his decision. If this child died would it be her fault? She cursed her stars for making her so unlucky. She had always loved astronomy since she was a kid, but it seemed the stars had no love for her at all, curse them._

 _Talk. She had minored in psychology and she remembered that in these instances talking should be the best way to go. "Hey kid, how old are you?"_

 _The child turned his back on her and she thought her heart would jump off her chest. But he continued sitting on the wall calmly._

 _"I'm going to come near. I just want to talk okay." Eun Soo said, trying to sound calm. She thought she saw the boy shrug and so she walked towards him slowly. Then she was standing beside where he sat and she was tempted to try and haul him back in. But both his feet were on the otherside and she was not very strong. If he struggled, he might slip from her grasp and fall._

 _"I'm eleven." The boy said unexpectedly. Eun Soo just stood beside him, ready to spring into motion just in case he thought of jumping off. He was much older than she first thought but still merely a child._

 _"So, do you have anything you want to talk about?" Eun Soo eyed him apprehensively as he continued to stare into the distance._

 _"Not really." But he turned to face her. "She's gone."_

 _Eun Soo's heart bled for him. She wanted to tell him she was sorry but she knew the words would just sound empty and it clearly was not something he wanted to hear. "I heard about your sister."_

 _This time he gazed up into the sky. "She still would have died you know, even without the car accident. She had lymphoma and the treatments were not working."_

 _"Your parents would be really worried about you right now." Eun Soo started leaning forward on the wall, although she was still alert to any of his movements._

 _"I'm sure they're fine." He didn't scoff nor did he sound sad about it. "They are not my birth parents. I'm just one of their foster children."_

 _"And your sister?" She didn't want to pry but she was genuinely curious._

 _"She was my real sister." He answered with no hesitation. "I just wanted her to live. That was all I ever wanted. But in the end she was just suffering for me. And even then I didn't want to let her go."_

 _The girl was just twenty-one. Eun Soo had read her records and found out that her husband who was twenty-five, had died on the spot during the accident._

 _"She fought to live because she loved you. And she knew you loved her which is why you didn't want to let her go. There is nothing wrong with that. She would not have wanted to make you feel guilty about it." Eun Soo's tone was matter-of-fact, like it was something anyone would have figured out._

 _There was actually amusement in his eyes as he looked at her. For a child of eleven he seemed so mature. He was like an old man in a child's body. "My sister's husband was a researcher for a huge company who was developing a cure for cancer cells. She married him for a chance to be in the program. Guilty? We were past that point a long time ago. The people who suffered just so we can live, I have ceased to count."_

 _Eun Soo didn't really know what he was talking about or how bad the situation he had been through, but she understood what he felt at the moment. "No you are not past it." The child looked surprised at her words."If you were, you would not be sitting where you are right now."_

 _"Can't I be here because I just lost my sister and the only reason for me to live in this world?" He was still looking at Eun Soo with an incredulous expression on his face._

 _"If that were the case I would have found you on the pavement instead of here." Eun Soo knew she was taking a risk with her words but for some reason she was confident the child would be too curious about what she meant than to jump off._

 _And she was right. He looked at her as if he wanted to hear more of her thoughts. "You feel guilty about all the things you have done to save your sister. Now, I have no idea what it is you have to feel guilty about or if you should feel guilty about it, but I know that you do. Now that she is gone, you think that the only way to make up for it is to die as well. But you know your sister want you to live and so you are sitting here contemplating about it."_

 _"I begged her to live and she fought really hard to do so. But she made me promise that in return, if she died, I would continue to live." There was suddenly anger in his eyes as he looked at Eun Soo. "Isn't that unfair? I fought hard along side with her. But she's gone, so why should I have to keep such promise?"_

 _"Because you feel guilty." Eun Soo answered._

 _"Isn't that just another reason to die?"_

 _"No." Eun Soo looked at him with a smile this time. "If you feel that guilty then you need to start by righting the wrongs that you have done. If you die, then the people who had suffered to get you to this point would have suffered needlessly. Don't you think you are just running away?"_

 _Then she offered her hand to him, her smile shining brighter than ever."The world is full of suffering. But people still choose to live because... because there are still plenty of beautiful things in this world. These things you cannot appreciate while there is still guilt in your heart. Your sister wanted to give you a chance to see this beautiful world. So until you do, you cannot give up."_

 _He coudn't resist the hand she offered. The moment he took her hand Eun Soo felt overwhelmed with relief._

...

Eun Soo opened her eyes and found herself looking up at the ceiling of the small shack. Why her dreams would suddenly conjure those memories made her confused. It was an incident that she had not forgotten of course. As a surgeon she was used to people who asked for her help because they wanted to live. She was not really used to meeting people who wanted to die.

She turned to face the person beside her. They were lying close together on the small sofa bed covered by a blanket. Choi Young was lying on his left side facing her with his right arm flung over her. Eun Soo's heart ached as she watched his sleeping face. Her heart ached at everything he'd had to endure in his life. She remembered the time when he too had just wanted to die. She wanted him to experience the joys of living. Not cause him more pain. Sometimes she wished she was someone born in his time, just a normal Goryeo woman. But then would he have looked at her? Would she have been given the chance to get closer to him?

Judging by his heavy breathing he seemed to be deep asleep. She wondered if he hadn't been getting much sleep lately. She had noticed that he had been a bit weary these past couple of days. She'd had a hard time sleeping too. Sometimes she was afraid to sleep, she was afraid to wake up and find that everything had just been a dream. Or that she was still back a hundred years away from his time.

Eun Soo sighed. They had finally found each other again but the scars of their separation had not completely healed yet. And now, they were facing another kind of trouble.

She was about to check the time when she realized she wasn't wearing her watch. She slowly removed Choi Young's arm to pick up her shirt from the floor and with just her shirt on she went to the table where she had placed her watch. It was 5:30 a.m. She had asked Choi Young about the portal and he'd told her it would open at sunrise and would stay open for five hours. They still had plenty of time.

She turned to look towards Choi Young again and found him awake, he had sat up and was looking at her. She gave him a smile as she walked back towards him. He never took his gaze off her. She pushed him back down on the sofa bed and then laid back down beside him, pulling the blanket over them as they lay on their sides facing each other. "It's still early, get some more rest."

But Choi Young was looking at her curiously as if trying to read her thoughts. Then he raised a hand to trace a line over her left cheek. "What are you going to tell your parents?"

"I already left them a note, telling them everything." She said while smiling at him reassuringly. "They probably wont believe everything but I'm sure they understand that I'm going away with you."

Choi Young's answering smile was self-deprecating. "I don't want them to think I've kidnapped you. Again." He said the last word with a small sigh while placing his hand back down.

Eun Soo gave a small laugh. "There you are worrying again. If you worry too much you'll get constipation." Then she turned serious. "Eomma will understand, I'm sure of it. She made me promise never to let you go."

Choi Young looked at her curiously, but when she refused to say anything else he let it slide. They will have to go back to Goryeo soon. They will be entering a country at war where even if there were no assassins after her life, she would still not be safe. He still grew anxious at the thought of bringing her to such a dangerous place.

But last night he had decided to let his hopes win over his fears. What Taizu had said were merely possibilities and not a foregone conclusion. And if Eun Soo was willing to fight then he too must not give up.

He took Eun Soo's left hand and brought it to his lips. "I swear I will protect you this time. I haven't really done a good job at it so far, but I will make sure no more harm comes to you."

He'd expected her to either accept his vow or voice out an argument, however, instead she pulled her hand away from his grasp and laid her head on his shoulder, avoiding his eyes.

A sprinkle of unease rose up from Choi Young's heart. As he could not see her eyes to gauge her thoughts, the feeling of unease quickly grew. He wanted to force her head up to look at him but he didn't do such thing.

"I promise to do my best not be much of a burden." Eun Soo finally managed to get the words out. She hated the fact that all of his worries about her safety were not unfounded. Taizu had warned her. Even if she decided to lay low or fake her identity, powerful assassins will be looking for her. And she had no means of fighting back. She had no swordsmanship skills and she never tried to learn any form of martial arts. She was totally helpless by herself. And she hated it. If she had been a fighter she would have been able to stand beside Choi Young without him worrying too much about her safety. She wished there was something more she could do.

But had Eun Soo been able to read Choi Young's thoughts she would have changed her views.

The moment Eun Soo spoke, an image of Mae Hee had flittered into Choi Young's mind. He couldn't remember much of what she looked like anymore but the events of that day was still clear in his head.

 _"I'm going to be a burden."_ That's what Mae Hee had said as he begged her to trust him.

 _"Please be a burden."_ He had pleaded with her. _"If I have you as a burden, then I will be able to live on. Mae Hee, if you can be my burden, then I can laugh while I live."_

A few days later he found Mae Hee hanging on a tree after having taken her own life. He had thought over and over again on what he could have said to persuade her more. _Did she not hear? Did she not believe? Or did his words just not mattered?_

 _"I have to protect the King as well as the kingdom of Goryeo, I really cannot bear any more burden than that."_

The words he had said to Eun Soo echoed in his mind making him feel like vomiting. How he wished he could take them back.

 _"Because if I go with you I will just be a burden that you don't want to carry."_ Eun Soo had asked him.

 _"Yes."_

He had not meant it of course. Still he had said those words. And yet... Eun Soo still fought to be with him. He wanted her to know how sorry he was for saying those words. And that he never meant them. And that he would gladly have her as burden for the rest of his life if she would accept him. But the words would not come out. He was too choked up to speak.

So instead he drew Eun Soo closer to him and held her tighter and tighter in his arms. After awhile his throat cleared up enough for him to speak.

"Please be my burden forever." Were the only words he could manage to get out.

But Eun Soo understood. Tears of happiness fell from her eyes at his words. And yet she was not the type who could gladly accept being someones burden. It wasn't that she didn't trust him to protect her, because she knew he definitely could do that. But she was someone who could not just passively accept protection.

So she raised her head to look him in the eyes. "In one condition." she said.

Choi Young was so relieved at the smile in her eyes that he almost didn't catch her words.

"Be my burden as well." Eun Soo continued.

A few years ago Choi Young would have been shocked by her words but he had gotten used to her stubborn and independent ways that her condition made him smile instead. However, he also knew she was good at her word and he would probably regret agreeing to it in the future so he gave a condition of his own. "As long as it doesn't involve risking your safety."

She actually scowled at that. "Are you going to make the same promise?"

This time Choi Young couldn't help scoffing. "Of course not. I'm a warrior. What good am I if I don't take risks?" But then his smile softened. "But Imja, you are a healer. In that aspect I will gladly place my life in your hands."

Eun Soo's brows furrowed. "I sure hope I don't find you in my care too much."

Choi Young couldn't help laughing. "I'll do my best not to be too much of a burden to you."

Eun Soo drew her left fist to punch his shoulder but Choi Young who was used to her reaction caught her wrist and instead pinned it down beside her head, half of his body rising up so he could look down at her.

Eun Soo's breath caught in her throat seeing as his face hovered near her own. Her eyes met his and she saw the laughter that had shone in them was gone. Instead it was replaced by a burning flame which made Eun Soo's heart beat faster and faster.

Slowly Choi Young lowered his head until his lips captured hers in a gentle kiss, their lips barely touching. Eun Soo gasped as his lips met hers, not realizing that she had been holding her breath. The moment her lips parted something seemed to ignite inside Choi Young and the kiss deepened. He kissed her as if he could not get enough of her, his lips devouring hers as if he had suddenly been allowed to partake in something that had been denied to him for a long time.

Eun Soo answered each kiss with the same amount of fervor, both her hands clutching at his shoulders as she kissed him back.

At the moment, there were no more secrets between them. They both knew what was in store for them in the future and they were both willing to tread on it together. The future might be bleaker than what they had imagined but for now they had faith.


End file.
